RWBY: The Huntsmen
by Shadowsouls0
Summary: Heroes come from all different walks of life. Be they rich or poor. Young, or old. Many men and women, so many with different looks, catchphrases, and battle cries to their names. But when Remnant faces a foe that threatens it's very existence, those phrases go silent, and one phrase is shouted from the ground, from all heroes of Remnant: Huntsmen! Assemble! (Superhero AU)
1. Act I: Chapter 1

**Act I: The Captain**

Chapter One: Birth of a Legend

**(a/n- for context, I finally got around to watching Avengers: Endgame and Spiderman: Far From Home… despite the fact most are… you know what you'll understand later. This AU has faunus, but no grimm (well, I mean, there ARE grimm but -wait does this count as spoilers?... I'm not gonna say just to be on the safe side.) Anyway, on with the writing (or reading, in your case)!)**

"Dr. Arc?"

June Arc sat up, yawning as she looked around. She was still in her lab, surrounded by countless papers, microscopes, test tubes -among other things. She turned, raising an eyebrow at the man standing at her door. "Colonel Autumn? What're you-" June yawned again, "doing here so late?"

"It's your son, ma'am."

June was _wide_ awake now, shooting off her stool and dashing to the coat rack nearby. She pulled her lab coat over her t-shirt in seconds, stopping at the doorway the Colonel was blocking. "What's wrong? Is he alright? Did they send him to the front lines!?" heads were _definitely_ going to roll if someone had sent her baby boy out to fight.

The colonel shook his head, "No, ma'am. Dr. Callus has instructed me to tell you that he's volunteered for Project New Blood. He said he'd come himself if not for his workload." June froze, her heart in her throat. 'Project New Blood' was practically a _death sentence_. If her son had volunteered for it…

She shoved past the colonel, her eyes burning with fury as she marched down the deserted hallway, past the countless other labs and facilities. The colonel didn't try and stop her. He knew better than to try and stop a mother from seeing their son -_especially_ when that mother was an Arc.

June, meanwhile, dashed through the concrete structure that housed her lab, finally reaching the door with Dr. Callus's name on it. She pounded on the door, running her hands back through her hair for a second to try and make herself look _somewhat_ in control.

The door flew open, none other than Jaune Arc raising an eyebrow. He was clad in standard military fatigues, with camo pants and a tan shirt that exposed his arms up to his biceps. "Mom? What are you-" Jaune stopped as his mother hugged him, wrapping her arms around his waist.

He didn't hesitate to hug back… he had a feeling he knew what this was about. "Mom if this is about New Blood it's-"

"Of _course_ that's what this is about! Do you have any idea how _dangerous_ it is!?"

"Mom I _know_ the risks -but Dr. Callus said I-"

"I don't care what that two-bit good-for-nothing Atlesian has to say! You're my son and there's no way I'm letting you throw your life away on _this_!"

"Mom! I can't _do_ anything else! I'm too bad at lying for spying and -and I'm not strong or big enough to be an _actual_ soldier! How else am I supposed to help Vale win the war!?"

"I believe her answer is to let _her_ do that, Mr. Arc." the bickering blonds turned, watching as a black-haired, olive-skinned man walked through the door. Like June he was clad in a lab coat, though unlike her a pair of spectacles were pressed tight to his face. Dark eyes met June's blue orbs, both glaring at each other.

"While your research into subatomic particles is surely important, Dr. Arc, _my_ research into biological enhancement is something that will actually aid the war effort. If your son -who is more than capable of making his _own_ decisions- is willing to help me in that regard, then you have no right to stop him."

June gritted her teeth, and would've punched the bastard if Jaune hadn't stepped in front of him, shielding him with his body. "Mom… I'll be okay." Jaune smile, but behind that June could see it. That same stubbornness she saw every day in her husband, in her daughters, in the _mirror_. One of the defining traits of being an Arc.

June sighed, "I know I can't stop you… and Callus?" June shoved her son off to the side, wrapping her hands in the taller man's lab coat, pulling him down to her.

"If _anything_ happens to my son, I'll break your spine like a _twig_."

"Understood."

Callus's face was blank as June stepped back, glaring at the older scientist. She left without another word, storming back to her lab, leaving Jaune and Callus in the doorway.

Jaune turned to the older man, "Well… that went about as well as it could have." if he was honest, Jaune had expected _much_ worse. He figured he'd have had to at _least_ call security down to the labs to pull his mother off of Callus before she accidentally killed him.

"Indeed… your mother is a very… temperamental, woman," Callus said, motioning with his hands as if trying to pull the right word from the air. Jaune nodded. If anything, that was an _understatement_. He was rather glad he'd gotten his father's level head rather than his mother's hot blood.

Callus cleared his throat, "Well, regardless… you _are_ aware of the risks involved with the procedure, yes?" Jaune nodded… oh he knew. He was _well_ aware of what had happened to the other men that had tried this. How New Blood had turned them into something… _else_.

Callus nodded, "Good… but I have to ask," he leaned in slightly, "How did you find out about project New Blood? I'm certain the Valean military wanted it kept secret from even it's most loyal soldiers -much less the son of two Mistralean defectors."

Jaune looked away, "I… heard a few things I shouldn't have. When mom gets mad she tends to yell… a _lot_." Dr. Callus slowly nodded. _That_ he knew. He was six doors and a hallway turn away from the woman's office and he _still_ heard her shouting at her assistants when they messed something up.

Callus reached into his desk, pulling out a notebook and making a few… well, notes, in the margins. His face slowly set into a frown as he imagined his mother getting back to her lab, pacing around, worrying about him, likely pulling on her hair… "Why did you say yes?"

"Pardon?"

"Why did you say yes to _me_, Dr. Callus? You told me you'd turned down older, stronger soldiers before so… why someone like me?"

Callus chuckled, tossing his notebook on the desk. "I asked myself that same question for a while. Why the young, inexperienced, weak boy over the tall, experienced, well-built soldiers? Well… do you want the truth?" Jaune could tell Callus was enjoying himself just by the flicker of his eyes. He nodded, of course.

"During basic training, I stand with the generals to observe each of you, along with a few of the other doctors. I saw countless men shouting, running along the fields, performing above any expectation… then there was you. I watched you fall, I watched you fail. Over and over you would fall down… but you'd always get back up," Callus explained.

"Of course, it _also_ helped I was there for the 'mess hall' incident… I'm sure you remember what _that_ was," Callus smirked at Jaune's blush, the way his eyes suddenly found a spot on the desk _very_ interesting. Oh, he remembered,

He remembered _very_ well.

…

"There they go again…"

Jaune muttered, gripping his plastic fork as he saw the three men approach a shorter fourth. The fourth staggered back against the wall, the reason for him being singled out as a bright orange and black striped tail flew up from his uniform.

"That your tail, or are you happy to see us?" the tallest of the group said, smirking down at him, roughly grabbing the young recruits tail. Where was the drill sergeant when he _needed_ him? The other two only chuckled as the first spun his fist around the faunus's tail, dragging it up as if he were giving him a wedgie.

Jaune stood, a few eyes turning from the spectacle to him. He gripped his fork, trying to slow his pounding heart as he gazed at the three. Suddenly it wasn't the tiger faunus, but rather a young, spectacled blonde girl, with three _far_ taller men standing over her. "_If you stand by, you're no better than they are._" the words of his mother echoed through his head as he walked toward the three.

He was three feet from the leader when the other two noticed him, "Oh hey, it's the tyke." Jaune grit his teeth. He _hated_ that nickname. What, it was _his_ fault he was only five feet tall and the shortest guy in his unit?

The leader turned, giving a toothy smile at him as the faunus wisely decided to run. "Well well well, didn't take _you_ for a freak lover. Let me guess, here to avenge that little coward?" he asked, leaning down. Jaune resisted the urge to take a step back, eyes flicking over to the few faunus watching him, all eyes holding a vague interest.

Jaune shook his head, "No… I just came over to get him away." at that he turned, walking back to his seat. As he expected, the larger man was _not_ having it. He felt a rough grip on his shoulder, the taller man hoisting him off the ground.

"You're a clever little bitch… how about I show you what I did to the _last_ wise guy I met, eh?"

…

"I… didn't _do_ much of anything."

"That's where you're wrong, Jaune," Dr. Callus said, face cracking into a wizened old smile, "You stood up -even though you had _no_ chance of winning. You knew that. The _second_ you stood you knew you were going to end the day with a beating… yet you acted anyway. You know what that tells me?" Jaune shook his head.

Callus sighed, "It _tells_ me that you've got heart. That you aren't in this for glory. Correct me if I'm wrong, but _I_ think you enlisted because you thought it was the right thing to do." Jaune nodded… that's him alright. Do the right thing even if it killed him… which it almost _did_ during the aforementioned incident.

Callus leaned back, "Mr. Arc, if you don't want to go through with the experiment, I'm not going to _make_ you. Just say the word, and I'll have you back on detail with your old unit." Jaune shook his head… no. No, he didn't even need to _think_ about that one. He wanted to do this, he _needed_ to do this.

Callus gave him a small smile, "That's what I figured. Now, I'd like you to report here at 0600 hours. We'll start the procedure in the morning."

Jaune shook his head, "Actually… is it okay if we begin the procedure now? You said you had everything ready an hour ago, right?" Callus nodded… he _had_ said that. He figured he'd want some rest beforehand.

"I just… I want to help as soon as I can. Wouldn't sleeping afterward help with all the… transitions you mentioned?" Jaune was no _expert_ in the field of biology or anatomy, but he _had_ always been told that sleeping was the body's way of recovery.

Callus slowly nodded… then his eyes widened. Without a word he dashed into his lab, tossing a bunch of seemingly random papers aside before grabbing a pen, marking down notes on a piece of paper.

Jaune slowly approached, raising an eyebrow as he looked over his shoulder at the practically unreadable math problem on the paper. Not just because it was incredibly complex, it literally _was_ unreadable to him. The ink was blurred across the page so much that it was practically impossible to tell where one number began and another one ended.

"Umm… are you OK, doctor?"

"Better. Far, _far_ better! You've given me the last piece!"

Jaune was too shocked to resist as Callus drug him through the lab, leading the two to a large, cylindrical machine. Callus flicked a few switches, the entire thing illuminated in faint blue light as the doctor started furiously typing on a keyboard.

"Jaune, I understand where I've been going wrong. _I've_ been thinking that in order for the serum to work properly, it must be administered at once while the subject is still awake. _You've_ made me realize that the subject's mind isn't capable of handling such a large change in consciousness, and thus the body and mind must be in a state of unconsciousness in order to comprehend the change!" the doctor said, the cylinder opening.

Callus, after finally calming down, turned to Jaune, "Mr. Arc, please change to your undergarments and step into the chamber." Jaune raised an eyebrow but complied regardless. He figured whatever this _was_ it probably would have a harder time if he was fully clothed. When he stepped in (now in his underwear) he saw the doors slowly seal shut.

"Subject secure, administering class IV sedative."

With a needle to the back of his neck, Jaune was out.

…

Jaune felt… heavy.

It wasn't as if he was carried or _covered_ in something heavy -he could feel the air against his skin. It's just that it seemed there was… _more_ of him -not that _that_ made any sense. He stood, looking around at the dark cylinder.

"Callus?" his voice sounded the same but… there was a kind of _strength_ behind it he didn't quite recognize. He couldn't put his finger on what it _was_, but something was _definitely_ different about him.

"Mr. Arc… please, step out of the chamber." Jaune raised an eyebrow… that did _not_ sound like Dr. Callus. It didn't sound like _anyone_ he knew of, actually. He moved his hands forward, raising an eyebrow as he felt the smooth metal beneath his fingers. His hands glided along the casing, finding it completely surrounded him.

It took him a moment to realize it was the same capsule he'd walked in for Callus. He gently pressed on the metal, eyes widening as he saw it bending at his hands. He staggered back, his back flush against the metal as he held up his hands. It was too dark to see them in the capsule but… he could almost _feel_ the power radiating off of them.

He squeezed his eyes shut as the capsule hissed open, brilliant light flowing in from the cracks. A torrent of voices and gasps washed over him,

"By God…"

"He really got it to work."

"I told you! I told you it had worked!" that was Callus -Jaune recognized his voice anywhere.

"Let me go! Let me see my baby!"

"Mom?" Jaune knew that voice. He knew that voice _anywhere_. When his eyes finally adjusted to the light, he saw five people surrounding the chamber he was in. Two of them -Callus and his mother- he recognized. The other three… not so much. Two of them were armed guards, both with weapons aimed in his general direction.

The other was a general, with four stars pinned to his olive green coat. Jaune saluted him out of instinct, "Ow!" only for his head to suddenly get acquainted with the top of the chamber. He wisely decided to step out _first_ before trying that again.

"At ease, soldier," the general said, sending Jaune back to parade rest. "Captain Arc, am I correct?" Jaune raised an eyebrow… 'Captain Arc'? As far as he knew none of his siblings had enlisted like he had… was his mother granted the rank of Captain at some point and just never told him?

"I'm… no sir. No sir, I've not even completed basic training yet," Jaune said, fighting down a confused expression… wasn't his mother taller than him? He wasn't on _that_ much of a high-step, was he?

Though, _that_ was quickly changed when his mother walked up to him, revealing the once taller woman to be just barely at his shoulder. She frowned up at him, a little smile on her face as her hands grabbed his shoulders.

"Jaune… that's really you, isn't it?" his mother asked. Jaune raised an eyebrow… of _course_ it was him. Why wouldn't it be? Who _else_ would've been with Callus at this hour other than maybe _her_ anyway?

"Yeah… wait, Callus what…" he trailed off, seeing Callus's deliberately blank expression. He didn't utter a word, simply gesturing to the nearby door.

Jaune didn't wait to dash out the door, slamming through into the hallway and making a break for the bathroom. He needed to see this… he needed to see this with his _own_ eyes. What had that pod done to him? He slammed his way into the bathroom, freezing at the sink.

He didn't recognize the man inside.

Gone was the scrawny, somewhat pathetic child. Instead, there was a man who looked to be carved out of marble, with muscles likely the size of his old _head_. His facial features weren't that different, other than his hair was a bit longer, his eyes glowing just a little bit brighter.

He trailed a hand over his torso, eyes widening as the muscles didn't just disappear or rub away like they would if it were a dream. He could feel every crevice, feel his heart beating strong in his ribcage, feel his lungs taking in more air than they ever would've otherwise. He lightly slapped his face.

He felt it.

This wasn't a dream.

_This was real_.


	2. Act I: Chapter 2

**Act I: The Captain**

Chapter Two: Testing The Waters

It was five minutes later when his mother walked in.

Jaune turned his attention from the mirror, gazing at his now shorter mother. June let her eyes fall down her son's physique… he looked a lot like his father, she realized. She approached slowly, as if her son were a spooked animal.

Jaune didn't dare move, afraid he'd hurt his mother if he so much as hugged her. After watching the metal bend at his very touch… yeah, he was in _no_ hurry to try that on a person. He barely felt his mother's touch on his shoulder, trailing up his collar to frame his face.

She frowned, "Honey… you don't have to say anything if you don't want to, but I need to know you're okay. Just nod, okay?" Jaune, of course, nodded. He was _shocked_, but… other than that he _felt_ fine. _Better_ than fine even. He felt like he could lift a _mountain_ if he needed to.

June let out a little sigh of relief, "Good… Dr. Callus wants you to come with him. He's going to run some tests to make sure everything's fine… okay?" Jaune nodded again, not applying even the _slightest_ pressure as his mother took his hand, guiding him out of the bathroom.

Callus approached a moment later, the guards and general flanking him on either side. "Mr. Arc, I'd like you to follow me to the infirmary," he said, gesturing just past June's lab, back toward the main base. Jaune nodded, turning without a word to lead the way. He'd _been_ there enough times, he figured he knew it by now.

The only words spoken were the quiet whisperings of the guards, both discussing Jaune beneath his hearing… well, they _thought_ it was beneath his hearing anyway. Jaune heard every word of it:

"Can you believe that scrawny kid turned into _that_?"

"No… probably some stage trick. Callus got some big buff guy that _looks_ like him."

"You think he'd try and fool the general like that?"

"Maybe. Maybe he's desperate for more funding? Proving it works… that or he's a traitor."

"Traitor? Guy seems alright for an Atlesian… I mean, they've got a _bounty_ on him for dust's sake."

"Part of the cover for spies. Got a brother that works espionage. They pulled a stunt like that on Mistral for _months_ before they finally extracted the guy."

"Callus isn't a spy, what he did to me is _real_," Jaune said, glaring at the two guards. The general raised an eyebrow at him, turning to see his guards' bewildered and somewhat embarrassed faces. Dr. Callus, meanwhile, had eyes brighter than the lights nearby.

"You heard them, Mr. Arc?" Callus whispered at a volume that _should've_ been beneath any normal person's hearing… and Jaune nodded. Callus nodded a few times, reaching into his coat and pulling out a notepad, adding to the many observations he'd made about Jaune since he woke up.

When Jaune, at last, led the three into the infirmary… well, suffice to say he raised a few eyebrows. All the nurses that weren't currently treating wounded or doing something else important stopped to stare, watching as the 6'6" man in nothing but a pair of boxers walked through, letting two doctors, two soldiers, and a general walk-in after him. The general turned to the nurses, a silent glare sending them all back to work.

Dr. Callus, meanwhile, turned to Jaune. "Mr. Arc, we're going to conduct a series of tests to your new abilities. If you feel threatened at any time, please tell me, okay?" Jaune nodded, gesturing for the doctor to go on. He'd expected a few things. Weights, maybe. Test his strength.

He _hadn't_ expected him to pull out a card with an inkblot on it.

"Uhh… am I supposed to-"

"Ah! Right. Forgive me, Mr. Arc. You see, I want to test your _mental_ capacities before I test your physical. To ensure there was no potential 'brain atrophy' as it were. No point in having a powerful physique if you can't tell left from right."

Jaune nodded… that made sense at least. There were probably at least a _few_ side effects from... whatever it was Callus had done to him. He sat down in a chair, going through a rather standard inkblot test with Dr. Callus.

Every time Jaune would answer something relatively mundane -like a bat, a bull, or two bears high-fiving- for what the blot would look like, and every time Callus would write it down. Then it switched to word association… then simple trivia… it was about ten minutes later when Callus finally stopped.

"Well, Mr. Arc, from what I can tell you have suffered no mental trauma beyond what would be considered normal. Now," Callus motioned to the two guards, both of which walked away and returned with an assortment of weights in their arms. Based on their facial expressions, both were struggling.

Jaune stood, "Here, let me help." Jaune casually lifted both armloads, stumbling back at how light they were… yeah, he was _not_ ready for that. Callus -having figured Jaune would offer help and make his job a bit easier- nodded a few times as he scrawled out some notes on his paper. Jaune, almost more curious than Callus himself, started lifting the weights, hoisting them to the ceiling with relative ease.

"Fascinating… now, Mr. Arc," he reached into his lab coat, pulling out a small jar,

"I'd like you to open this pickle jar."

Jaune raised an eyebrow… was this some kind of test about being delicate? Some kind of measure of control? He complied regardless, working with the seal for a moment before at least opening the jar, handing it to Callus. Jaune watched as the man took a pickle from it, casually taking a bite from it.

"... what was the point of that test?"

"Opening the jar. Those lids are rather pesky to get off."

The general and guards slowly shook their heads, June letting a quiet giggle slip. She had to admit, it _was_ kind of funny. Callus claimed to have enhanced her son beyond any physical limitations… and one of the first things he has him do is open a pickle jar.

The general cleared his throat, "Dr. Callus. If you're done with your _snack_, I think we'd all like to continue testing Mr. Arc's capabilities." Jaune and June both nodded in agreement. For _very_ different reasons, both of them were very curious about Jaune's new abilities.

Callus finished his pickle, nodding a few times before his hands flew to his throat. To June, the general, and the nurses nearby, it was rather obvious he was miming actually choking. To Jaune and the soldiers? It was a _very_ real threat.

"Doctor Callus!" Jaune didn't think as he wrapped his arms around the man's waist, performing the Heimlich maneuver in a way that made his mother both proud, and _incredibly_ terrified.

Callus tapped Jaune's shoulder a few times, giving him a faint smile, "Fascinating… even under _stress,_ you're able to maintain control over your new strength."

Jaune raised an eyebrow… how was the doctor so calm? Had he not _just_ been choking? It took him a few seconds (and noticing the restrained smiles and laughs from his mother and the nearby nurses) to realize the doctor had faked it as another test.

Jaune put him down, Callus turning to the general, "_Now_, General Hanlon, do you understand why I choose him?" Jaune raised an eyebrow… he knew where this was going but… did the general actually _want_ someone like him? Someone that cared about other people's lives and tried to save them?

The general nodded a few times, "Yes… he has a remarkable control for someone that only recently gained their strength." Jaune's worries seemed to be misplaced. The general had a _very_ different interpretation of why Callus had picked him compared to the _actual_ reason.

Callus just nodded along, pointing across the room, "Mr. Arc, I'd like you to read the letters on the eye chart." Jaune looked up, nodding a few times. Callus expected him to do well, of course. He hadn't needed glasses or really _anything_ to correct his vision beforehand, and the serum -by his calculations- should've only improved that.

But even _he_ was shocked at the results.

"P-E-Z-O-L-C-F-T-D," Jaune recited, reading the lowest possible line on the chart. One the doctor -_with_ his glasses- couldn't actually see. It wouldn't be _that_ surprising if Jaune wasn't almost _forty feet away_.

Curious, Callus tried something else, "Alright… Mr. Arc, I'd like you to tell me… hold on -nurse! I need a small syringe over here! Used, preferably!" the nurse, naturally, was rather confused at that, but brought one over regardless.

"Ah! Perfect, thank you. Now, Jaune, I'd like you to tell me what was last in this syringe." Callus held up a hand, shushing the nurse, June, and the general himself. No doubt they were about to ridicule him about how such a feat as impossible, how Jaune couldn't-

"It looks like… anesthesia? I think that's what it is. It looks clear but… kinda cloudy."

"He… that's right how -_how_ is that possible?" the nurse asked, taking the syringe back, holding it up to the light herself. There was _nothing_. It had been perfectly… on closer inspection, she realized there was a _tiny_ drop of anesthesia still in the bottom. It was barely the size of the _needle_ -how could he have known?

Even Dr. Callus was impressed, "My _word_! Jaune, what you've just done has expanded the boundaries of human evolution! You've shown that it's possible to further improve upon the human body through biochemical manipulation!" Jaune pretended, for a few seconds, to understand what the fast spoken, excited techno-babble meant.

The general… did _not_ share Jaune's courtesy. "English, doctor. Explain exactly what just happened." Callus -taking a few moments to calm himself -briefly went into a small rant about something Jaune… honestly didn't understand in the slightest.

He was a _bit_ more focused on his mother as she walked in front of him, flexing her finger to get him to lean down. Jaune complied… it was so _weird_, leaning down to hear his mother when just a few days ago she was doing the _exact_ same thing to hear him.

"Honey… Jaune. Just because Callus made you this way, I don't want you to do _everything_ he tells you to do. If you don't agree with it, _say_ something… you might be bigger and stronger, but," she leaned up, planting a kiss on his cheek, "You're still my little baby."

Jaune rubbed his cheek, face flushed as he stood up straight, "Mom…" he trailed off, gesturing to Callus, the general, and the nearby guards. Granted, those guards _definitely_ weren't saying anything to piss off the guy that had just casually lifted well over 400 pounds of equipment and could see better than a _hawk_.

June turned, "I've got to get back to the lab… if they deploy you, I want to see you first, okay?" Jaune nodded as his mother walked away, heading back to her lab. Away from the very _obvious_ research of Callus, and into the much less obvious research into her little, subatomic world.

Jaune, not for the first time, wondered why his mother worked on a military base and not in a normal lab somewhere. After all, it wasn't like her work was _vital_ to the war effort at the moment. _Callus_, on the other hand… well, he'd created _him_ -and could assumingly create more.

"Mr. Arc," Jaune turned, seeing the general approaching, holding out a hand, "I don't believe we've formally met yet. I'm General Hanlon, and you'll be taking orders from me now." Jaune raised an eyebrow as he shook the man's hand, the older general giving him a small smile before turning to Callus.

"Doctor, I'd like you to keep up testing… and for Gods sakes get this soldier some pants," the general said, gesturing to Jaune's attire -or lack thereof. Jaune, for the first time since he'd been in the bathroom, looked down, his face turning even more red as he realized he'd been half-naked during his entire walk through the base.

Callus nodded, saluting as the general walked off, waiting to relax until he disappeared around a corner. "Phew… man means well but I _swear_ he's going to give me a heart attack one of these days." Callus gripped his chest as if to further illustrate the point.

One of the nurses walked over, looking at Callus for a brief second before turning to Jaune, giving him a smile, "Hello Mr. Arc. Dr. Callus does your… patient, I assume, require a standard or non-standard checkup?"

Callus shook his head, "Oh that won't be necessary at the moment, ma'am. If there are any problems relating to Mr. Arc's condition, I will refer him to your unit immediately. For the time being, however," he turned to Jaune,

"We have a _lot_ of work to do… and by 'we', I mean you."

…

"Ahh… I… I can't go on, doctor…"

Jaune fell to his knees, sweat pouring down his fatigues and over his brow. Callus, meanwhile, was _still_ sweating (mostly because of the heat) but of course hadn't been running. He reached into the cooler next to him, handing Jaune a water bottle before grabbing a pen, working to tally his… well, tally marks.

Jaune had completely drained three bottles from a nearby cooler when Dr. Callus spoke up. "One-hundred and seventeen laps… _definitely,_ a boosted endurance." as if any _normal_ human could sprint over one-hundred laps and still be standing long enough to go another _seventeen_ in the first place.

Jaune nodded a few times, leaning against the metal wall Callus had been using for shade. "AH! HOT! HOT!" unfortunately, Jaune's new physique didn't make him immune to heat… or _pain_. As Jaune was leaning forward in pain, Callus was putting more notes down, slowly nodding as noted how long Jaune's recovery was taking.

In five minutes, Jaune seemed like he was up and ready to go again. "Mr. Arc, are you hung-"

"Starving." Jaune didn't let him finish,

Callus nodded a few times, "I see… if my calculations are correct, the serum significantly boosted your metabolism. While this means any dead cells on your body should more rapidly replicate, it _also_ means you'll likely require far more nutrients than an average human of your size."

Jaune nodded a few times, stomach growling at the thought of food, "Yeah… yeah, food sounds good -now, now preferably." he said, nodding a few times as he looked away from Callus. The doctor -speaking of- slowly stood, packing up his small folding chair and making his way to the mess hall.

"Grab the cooler, if you would." Jaune did so with one arm, holding it over his shoulder for ease of… well, to be honest, he just wanted something cold to lean his head against. It was _eighty-nine _degrees outside, can you blame him?

When the two walked into the mess hall, they drew _quite_ a few eyes. Though, it was actually quite a bit less than Dr. Callus had anticipated. The reason for that? Well… there weren't _many_ of them, but some people's eyes were still drawn to the three large men near the center of the hall, surrounding a shorter one.

Jaune grit his teeth as he saw the same men that had -apparently- helped to get him noticed by Dr. Callus. This time it wasn't a faunus, but rather a shorter, light-brown haired man, blue eyes staring at the three. Callus couldn't hear over the commotion in the mess hall, but _Jaune_ could hear just fine.

"Looky here boys, we got another wannabe _hero_." that was the taller one, he guessed the leader.

"Yeah. Should pay the wiseguy a visit soon, punish him for this stupid _trend_ he started."

"You won't have to look far!" Jaune shouted, walking toward the group. The four turned, three of their faces paling as the _significantly _taller and more muscular Arc loomed over them. The three looked up as he stood there, glaring down at them. The mess hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, everyone looking on in shock.

Jaune broke the silence when he turned to the target of the other three, holding out his hand. The other man looked at it for a moment before taking it, letting Jaune pull him to his feet. Jaune turned his attention back to the other three, who were now very much in the 'piss their pants' stage of fear.

Jaune just turned, guiding the other man back toward Dr. Callus. "How about you have lunch with us so they don't get any ideas?" Jaune asked, giving the man his signature smile. The man blinked a few times, slowly nodding as the three went their way through the line.

After a bit of work from Dr. Callus (also known as scribbling out an excuse on why the large soldier behind him needed double rations), the three were sitting at an empty table with four trays… two of them were for Jaune alone.

Jaune had downed his before Callus was even _half-way _through with his. The other man -who'd finished his about the same time Jaune finished both of his- was the one that picked up the conversation, holding out his hand. "I'm Dove Bronzewing, by the way." Jaune shook his hand, smiling at the newly named Dove.

"Did you try and do what I did? The whole 'stand up to give the victim time to run' thing?" Jaune asked. Dove confirmed that yes, that was _exactly_ what he'd done… except this time there had been someone to keep him from getting the beatdown that Jaune had received when he'd tried it.

"So… uh, weren't you a lot smaller? I heard they beat you up and… I mean, they do _not_ look like they could beat you up," Dove said, gesturing to Jaune's large frame. Jaune was about to nod when he froze, turning and raising an eyebrow at Dr. Callus.

He didn't think it'd be a _secret_ -hard to hide it when he was walking around _suddenly_ so much larger than he used to be- but it couldn't hurt to ask.

Rather than just letting Jaune tell Dove about himself, Callus decided to explain… well, most _everything_ for him. Jaune just sort of stood by, throwing in bits here and there as Callus went to explain the process. Unlike Jaune, Dove didn't seem to be left behind, but rather just seemed fascinated, even asking questions that rivals the doctor's explanation.

"Were you a college guy before the war?" Jaune asked. Given he could apparently understand the doctor's jargon with relative ease, Jaune figured it was a safe assumption. It surprised no one when Dove nodded.

"Sort of. I was in medical school before they conscripted me. I went from learning how to save lives to learning how to _take_ them in five minutes," Dove explained. Jaune nodded a few times… Dr. Callus, however, had a few more questions.

"Seems odd that they'd draft a medical school student as a soldier and not a medic. Other than farmers, doctors are usually the _lowest_ on the conscription ladder," Callus said, scratching his chin. Dove nodded a few times, frowning as he looked away from the two.

"My father being Atlesian probably has something to do with it…" Callus slowly nodded… he wasn't surprised. He'd seen _dozens_ of soldiers conscripted and thrown onto the front lines just because they had Atlesian or Mistralean blood in them.

Jaune raised an eyebrow, "Why would you being Atlesian have… wait, they do that?" Jaune leaned in, eyes widening as it dawned on him. Dove looked up at the taller man, giving him a faint smile before he nodded. It was… odd, seeing someone that wasn't aware of Atlesian conscripts… it was almost refreshing -and also sad, in a weird way.

Before Dr. Callus could further comment, he heard a burst of static coming from his pocket. He reached in, pulling out his radio. "Dr. Callus, general Hanlon is requesting you and Mr. Arc's presence in his office immediately."

"Understood, we're on our way," Callus said into his mic, the three standing. Callus looked between Jaune and Dove, raising an eyebrow at the taller blond. Jaune looked to Dove before nodding a few times, giving Callus a little smile.

The doctor shrugged, "Suit yourself. Alright, soldiers, follow me." the three made their way out of the cafeteria, Jaune forcing himself to take smaller steps to avoid passing Callus -who apparently knew where Hanlon's office was.

It took five minutes to reach his office, the three walking in without hesitation. There the general sat alone, gesturing for Callus to sit down before his eyes trailed back to the two soldiers. "I thought I requested only you and Mr. Arc, Dr. Callus," Hanlon said, eyes narrowing at Dove. Jaune stepped in front of him, nodding a few times.

"He's here on my request, sir," Jaune said, honestly rather shocked at how calm his voice sounded. He should've been _terrified_ of the man in front of him… maybe his mind was realizing just how strong he was before even _he_ did… and maybe his mind would somehow make that make _sense_ for him too.

The general glared at him for a second before a wry smile crossed his face, "Hehe… turning into a bit of a maverick now that you got muscles, huh? Good… just don't go _too_ maverick. I'd rather not have to declare you AWOL," he said.

Callus fell back in his chair, letting out a sigh of relief. That could've gone _very_ badly -for literally _everyone_ involved. His mind had currently been running through his worst-case scenario 114, where Jaune accidentally killed the general and ran off, resulting in both the doctor and him getting hunted down and executed by the Valean military.

Jaune nodded, giving the general a smile and salute, "Don't worry sir, you won't have to… so, what are our orders?" there was _definitely_ a reason for the general to suddenly call them here. He _knew_ it wasn't just checking up on how he was doing… actually, come to think of it, it _might've_ been that, checking how Callus's tests had gone and all that.

His dark expression said otherwise.

"We're sending you and Callus to the eastern front… you'll be selecting your gear from the armory tomorrow, shipping out at 0800 hours on Tuesday," he said. Callus, naturally, raised more than a _few_ objections to sending out someone that had relatively _recently_ gained their strength and abilities to the front.

"Sir!"

Dove saluted, stepping in front of Jaune, "Please allow me to accompany Captain Arc on his mission!" Jaune was, of course, confused. For one thing, he was _not_ a captain -not by _any_ stretch of the imagination. He'd not even gotten past his basic _training_ yet!

The general just smiled, "I can't allow you to accompany him, cadet Bronzewing… _Sergeant _Bronzewing and Captain Arc, on the other hand…" Jaune and Dove looked at each other, both stunned at what they were hearing… was it _real_? Was the general _actually_ just promoting them both?

"Are you… serious, sir?" Dove was the one who found his tongue first.

"You're damn right I am… but understand you can't go bragging about this to anyone just yet. Wouldn't want Mistral and Atlas learning about our newest weapons, now would we?" Hanlon said, a small smirk on his face as he motioned them out.

Callus, still somewhat miffed about his objections being so casually waved by the general, walked out after the two, closing the door and heading down for his lab. Just before he reached the elevator, he turned to Dove, slowly shaking his head, a faint smile gracing his features, "Kid… either you're a moron or you've got bigger balls than an Ursa."

"He's an idiot, then." the three turned, Dove's face going red as he saw a young woman in a nurse's uniform approach. Dr. Callus -meanwhile- was more confused as to why the seemingly random nurse was approaching… and thought for a moment that it was Dr. Arc in disguise… then he put two and two together.

Jaune, meanwhile, just walked up to her, a smile on his face, "Jasmine!" said girl casually held out her arms, embracing her not-so-little-anymore brother. She pulled back after a second, looking over him for a moment before turning to Dr. Callus.

"Hey, think you can give my boyfriend this treatment?"


	3. Act I: Chapter 3

**Act I: The Captain**

Chapter Three: A War of Many Colors

"Captain Arc?"

Jaune turned, raising an eyebrow at the woman in the doorway. The dark brown hair cut off at her shoulders, the standard military uniform… had he met her before? She looked familiar but… he couldn't really place _why_.

She walked toward him, casually holding out her hand, "I'm Angela Carter, special weapons procurement officer for the Vale Intelligence Agency. You, Dr. Callus, and Sergeant Bronzewing are to accompany me to the armory immediately."

Now it was Dove that raised an eyebrow, "Right now? The general said-"

"These orders are coming from the director, Sergeant. You, the Captain, and Dr. Callus are to accompany me to the armory _immediately_."

Jaune nodded a few times, shaking her hand before the four started walking, heading for the armory. As Angela and Callus led the way, Dove and Jaune lagged behind a little, "Jaune? Don't you think this is a _little_ weird? I mean, we were _just_ at the general's office." Dove whispered, leaning up to try and shield his words from the woman in front of them.

Jaune nodded, one imperceptible if you weren't looking for it -like Dove was. "I know it's weird, but… I mean, let's hope for the best, right? Maybe it's a management mixup, two different higher-ups giving different orders. Or… maybe the general wants us leaving at 0800 tomorrow instead of Tuesday and he… uh, asked someone else to deliver the message? Could be a lot of things," Jaune whispered back, more trying to convince himself than Dove at this point.

Dove nodded, seemingly satisfied -if nervous- about the whole thing. The two followed the Doctor and procurement officer. While Dove couldn't hear a word the two were saying -and thus was somewhat paranoid about it- Jaune… well, he could hear _just_ fine.

"What's the meaning of this? Very seldom would the general change his mind over such an order." that was Callus.

The girl shrugged, "I just know the director ordered me to get you three and bring you to the armory."

The rest of their conversation followed a similarly uninteresting vein, mostly discussing protocol and other such things. Jaune tuned them out, for the most part, content to follow behind until the group reached the armory doors.

Two guards flanked the door, both in full uniform and heavily armed, maybe a few inches shorter than Jaune was. The second they saw the woman, they pulled the doors open, letting them walk through the solid steel doors into a cooler, concrete hallway.

The three walked for about a minute before reaching another set of doors, with another two guards flanking it. Both seemed more on edge than last time, each with their rifles ready to fire. Angela reached into her pocket, pulling out a badge and flashing it at the two soldiers. They looked at each other before nodded, shouldering their weapons as the four walked through.

Jaune and Dove's eyes widened as they stepped through the doors, into what looked to be almost a warehouse. Tables laden down with rifles, submachine guns, bullets, grenades, vests, rocket launchers -you name it, it was there.

At most tables, there were soldiers either stripping the weapons down to repair and/or clean them (neither Jaune nor Dove really knew which). Massive industrial lights hung from the ceiling, illuminating most of the room with the occasional patch of shadows. Jaune heard what sounded like engines running, followed by a fleeting glimpse of a small cart driving in the distance.

Angela turned around, leaning against one of the tables that was actually empty. "Take a rifle and a pistol. Whatever you think you can use well. You've got one hour," she said, Dr. Callus taking a seat next to her.

Dove immediately went to the rifles, eyes taking on a strange, almost zen-like quality as he started slowly lifting some of them, hoisting them to his shoulder and aiming down the sights. Jaune followed, looking at the somewhat larger, more long-range weapons. He lifted a few, testing a few of the grips, aiming away from anybody.

He'd gone through about four rifles when his eyes caught sight of something… different. It was only there for a moment -just a slight glare in the corner of his eye- but it was enough for him to notice. He slowly turned, walking toward where he'd seen the glare. It took him passing two rows to finally see what it was that had caught the light:

A shield.

It was a simple thing, really. Gray metal with a few lines around the center like a bullseye or an old record, a simple handle on the back. Jaune picked it up, raising an eyebrow at how _light_ it felt… and how _sharp_ the edge felt when he accidentally pricked his finger on it.

The man nearby gave him a small smile, "Captain Arc, am I right?" he held out a hand, "I'm quartermaster Hayes. I gotta say, you've got good tastes." Jaune shook the man's hand, returning the smile. He looked down at the shield a second later, running his finger along the smooth surface, finger just barely trailing over the lines.

"That's high-quality dust alloy's you're feeling. Took a standard 1/8th-inch steel plate and turned it into an indestructible circle. That thing's survived every weapon in this armory," Hayes said, gesturing to the many tables of weapons, each with what Jaune now guessed were quartermaster's over them.

Jaune held the shield over his head, moving it around as if the edge were cutting through the air itself, "Why doesn't _everyone_ have one of these?" Jaune asked. It seemed like it would be _much_ easier to win the war if all the soldiers were effectively _bulletproof_.

Hayes shook his head, "Wish they were. After the army made that one, they didn't even have enough dust left over to make some indestructible _earrings_. What's in your hands is all we got… then again," he lightly tapped the shield, "I'm thinking it's in the _perfect_ hands to use it."

Jaune flipped the shield over, looking at the shiny surface at his own reflection. The blue eyes, the blond hair… if he tilted it the right way, it looked like he hadn't changed at all. That he was the same, scrawny recruit he had been just a few days ago.

"Jaune?" Dove asked, raising an eyebrow at the taller man. Jaune looked up, raising an eyebrow in kind when he noticed the large assault rifle on Dove's back, the combat knife in his boot, and the revolver at his hip.

"Don't you think that's… a _little_ overkill?" Jaune asked.

"Someone has to pack the firepower. You're just carrying a shield," Dove retorted.

Jaune nodded, "Yeah, fair enough… wonder how well-"

**BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!**

Jaune didn't move an inch, shield instinctively placed between him and Hayes's small pistol. When the sound of the gunshots finally died down, Hayes holstered his pistol, a little smirk on his face, "_That's_, how well it works captain. See," he leaned down, crawling beneath the table before picking up the flattened remains of a bullet, "Didn't even ricochet."

"About time we found someone for that shield."

The three turned, Jaune and Dove raising an eyebrow at the man approaching them. Clad in a simple black trench coat, dark glasses perched on a snowy white face, the man looked oddly… just _odd_. Jaune couldn't quite put his finger on it but… something about him was just _off_.

"Director, the soldiers are almost ready for transit," Angela said, marching up next to Jaune before saluting. The director waved it off, nodding a few times as his head turned between the two. Then he looked down, sunglasses pointed in the general direction of Jaune's new shield. He slowly shook his head, lightly tapping on the front of it.

"A good shield… you know _why_ we're fighting this war son, right?" he asked, looking back up to Jaune. Jaune slowly nodded, vocally confirming it a moment later -mostly since he had _no_ clue if the glasses meant the man was blind or if he was just wearing them for no reason… indoors.

"My family had to flee from Mistral… two of my sisters are in jail because they wouldn't comply with the whole 'no artistic expression' law… I don't know if that's why Vale's fighting, but I know that's why I am," Jaune said, gripping the handle on the shield a bit tighter than he needed to.

The director nodded, "Well, sort of. Officially we're fighting because Mistral attacked our colonies in the east. Course no one likes the idea of a government imprisoning you just for painting a picture…" he chuckled, "I'm thinking when you go out there you show them what we think of their little anti-art crusade."

Jaune nodded a few times… "Will any paints stick to this shield?" he asked. He wasn't sure exactly how dust-infused metal would work… though, if it was anything like normal metal, it _might_ be a bit of an issue.

The director shook his head, "No, it'd have to be dust. We'll handle that," he reached into his coat, pulling out a small piece of paper, "all _you_ have to do, Captain Arc, is make the designs."

Jaune nodded a few times, grabbing the paper and pressing it against the wall and immediately started to sketch. "One side for the shield, the other for the suit, Captain," the director said.

It took Jaune five minutes for both of them, handing the emblems off to the director. He looked at them for a few seconds before handing it to Angela, gesturing with his hand to the suit… which apparently caused the doors to close. How that was possible, Jaune didn't know.

Ten minutes later, the doors came upon and there she was. "How did she… nevermind." Jaune… figured he may as well stop questioning it. He didn't know _how_ it was happening or _why_, but at the same time he wasn't sure how important it was. What _was_ important was what was behind her.

"Well? Go on, try it on!" Dove said, lightly pushing Jaune's shoulder. He was almost more excited about this than _Jaune_ was -and he was the one getting to wear the suit! Jaune nodded a few times, walking into the room.

When he came out, even _Callus_ had a hard time recognizing him.

The blond hair was hidden beneath a navy cap, stretched up over his head. Clear goggles covered the Arc's eyes as he stepped forward, the suit flush against his skin as he walked forward. In his hand was his shield, a small part of it gray near the bottom, the Arc family crest created in bright yellow along the front, a ring of blue between them with a white star in the center.

The emblem he'd chosen for his chest were two white axes, crossed near the center. The symbol of Vale, replicated on each of his shoulders, surrounded by the same blue fabric as the rest of the suit. Jaune pulled up his goggles, looking out at the group. The director and Hayes looked pleased, while the others looked moderately impressed.

"Oh, one more thing," the director walked up to Jaune, handing him a small slip of paper before turning around and giving another one to Dove. "Codenames for secure contact. Like the old general said, can't have everyone in their mother knowing about our new secret weapons," he said, a little smile on his face.

At that, Dove and Jaune immediately looked at their names. "Looks like I'm 'Bird of Prey'... I'm fine with that." Dove said, a small smile on his face as he shoved the paper in his pocket. Jaune nodded a few times, looking down at his own. He'd expected something about project new blood, something about his name, maybe even something about Vale. Though… he kind of liked the codename he'd been given, honestly.

"Guess I'm 'Captain Remnant' then."


	4. Act I: Chapter 4

**Act I: The Captain**

Chapter Four: Mile High Club

Jaune was… _not_ having a great time.

While his new abilities _did_ have a lot of bonuses, there was one negative he _really_ wished Callus had been able to get rid of. Sure it was _better_ now, but it was still something that _really_ slowed him down. Now he had to battle with his age-old enemy, his most fearsome foe:

Motion sickness.

"Uhh… is he gonna be okay?" Dove asked, raising an eyebrow at Callus. Jaune was currently leaning against the wall of the plane, one hand gripping his forehead while the other was covering his mouth. It'd be almost funny to Dove if he wasn't sitting next to him and was in the 'splash zone' as it were.

Callus nodded, "Yes, yes, he'll be fine. Had this problem before the serum was introduced… I'd _hoped_ the serum would remove it entirely, but apparently, it only weakened the effects." there was _one_ thing his serum had failed at thus far. It'd succeeded beyond his _wildest_ expectations in other fields… he supposed it was only fitting it failed somewhere.

Dove slowly nodded, looking over at his new partner, "This is gonna be a long flight, isn't it?" he muttered beneath Callus's hearing. It wasn't beneath Jaune's but… well, he wasn't exactly in the _best_ of states to comment on it. It was a miracle he'd managed to keep himself conscious during it all.

Callus leaned back in his seat, head resting on the side as he seemingly fell asleep. Dove, meanwhile, turned to Jaune, "You holding up okay?" he asked.

Jaune nodded a few times, "Yeah… once we-" he covered his mouth again as the plane shook, his stomach doing flips, "-get past the turbulence." he finished. He felt a hand on his back, gently running over his shoulder, no doubt trying to distract him.

Jaune smiled back at him… he'd give him credit, it _was_ working, "Thanks… you're pretty good at that," Jaune said, sitting up slightly. Dove nodded a few times, giving him a small smile.

"Yeah, my sister has pretty bad motion sickness. Parents would stick me next to her when we went on car trips, boat rides, plane rides -if it moved, I had to sit next to her and calm her down," Dove explained, counting off the number of things that made his sister sick on his fingers.

Jaune nodded a few times, "Yeah… some reason I'm the only one that gets-" he covered his mouth as the plane shook again, "-motion sick. One sister has asthma, but other than that _I_ got stuck with all the problems."

Dove chuckled at that, "_Tell_ me about it. I'm a weakling in a family of neanderthals that drink eggs for breakfast and chew nails for lunch. Meanwhile, I just barely cleared the minimum for military service.."

Jaune chuckled right back at him, "You're kidding. The only reason they let me serve at _all_ was because my mother worked on base. Didn't help I was about a foot shorter and could barely run the full lap." The two shared a laugh at their own misfortune, the plane slowly righting itself as it reached cruising altitude.

Jaune sat upright, his stomach settling as the plane stopped shaking every two seconds. It didn't help that it was a military transport, designed for ferrying paratroopers behind enemy lines to support a ground offensive -troops that more than likely wouldn't see the light of day again. 'Comfort' wasn't exactly high on the engineers' priority when they designed the plane.

Jaune looked around for a moment, raising an eyebrow, "Hey, Dove," Dove turned, raising an eyebrow right back at Jaune, "Out of curiosity, do you know how expensive these planes are to fly?" he asked.

Dove shrugged, "Uhh… something over a few thousand lien per trip, why?" something was off. Dove could sense it now, what with the way Jaune was standing, eyes flicking around the plane. The more he looked around, the more things didn't make sense. It'd be one thing if they were being flown in with cargo for the sake of secrecy, but the only cargo on the ship was his shield and Dove's guns.

"Then why just send the three of us? Why send Dr. Callus at _all_ when he's more valuable back home. The only people it would help are-" Jaune stopped talking as he saw Angela walk out of the cabin, closing the door behind her. She walked a few steps before she froze, eyes flicking between Jaune and Dove.

"Am I interrupting something?" she looked between the two again, her eyes slowly trailing the sleeping Callus before walked to them, taking a seat on the opposite side of the aircraft.

Jaune shook his head, sitting back down as Dove did the same -the two doing so nearly in unison. "No… is uh, is there any reason for this plane to be flying _besides_ me, Dove, and Callus?" he asked. He figured if there was _anyone_ on the plane that knew the answer, it'd be her… maybe the pilot, but he wasn't going to risk distracting him.

Angela shook her head, "Not that I'm aware of. The director planned for us to arrive in an undisclosed location near the front lines. Given how he normally is, I'd say he has some sort of objective for all of us once we reach it."

Jaune slowly nodded… that made him feel a _bit_ better, but he was still on edge. Under normal circumstances he'd chalk it up to his motion sickness but… something else seemed off. "Why would he waste so much money _just_ on the three of us?"

Angela chuckled, "You _really_ don't know anything about the VIA, do you? They'd pay a thousand lien for a toilet seat if they needed it that badly. _This_ is nothing." she gestured to the empty plane around them. Jaune and Dove chuckled at that, their minds somewhat put at ease.

After twenty minutes of awkward silence -interrupted only by the occasional noises of movement- Jaune spoke up again, "So, uh… you're a spy?" he… didn't speak up very _well_, granted, but at the same time.

Angela gave him a little smirk, "If I'm not a spy, I'll tell you no. If I _am_ a spy, I'll still tell you no -so don't bother asking again." Jaune blushed at that, Dove chuckling at his taller partner's expense.

"Watch and learn," Dove whispered, giving Jaune a wink before leaning forward on his knee, "So, guessing your boyfriend must be mad, huh? Hanging out with guys like us all the time." he gestured to Jaune with one hand, himself with the other.

She raised an eyebrow, "I don't have a boyfriend."

"Well, maybe we can change that," Dove said, a small smirk on his face.

Angela blinked a few times, her eyes flicking over Dove's face as if expecting a punchline before she smirked again, "If you really want to join the mile-high club, you're gonna have to do better than a pickup line to get with a Vacuo girl." Now it was Dove's turn to blush and Jaune's to laugh, Dove turning away and fixing his hair to try and regain his composure.

"You're from Vacuo?" Jaune asked, steering the conversation away from his embarrassed friend and back to the tan-skinned woman in front of him. Angela nodded, giving Jaune a small smile. At least _one_ of the people she'd met didn't spend the first few minutes flirting with her.

"What made you come to Vale?" Jaune asked. He knew why he left Mistral, but from what he knew Vacuo was allied with Vale and was refusing to partake in the whole 'removal of the arts' thing.

In response, she leaned back, slipping the belt from her fatigues. Jaune was about to ask what she was doing when a brilliant, orange and black tiger tail slipped from beneath her waist, curling into the hand in front of her. "You've never _been_ to Vacuo I'm guessing, otherwise you'd know how horrible of a place it is… especially with this little thing," she responded, gently stroking her tail.

"You're a faunus?"

Angela stared blankly at him for a moment.

"Well, I mean I know you're a faunus but… uh… I don't know where I'm going with this…" Jaune hung his head, trailing off slightly.

She sighed, leaning forward and pushing his head back up with her finger, Dove watching the exchange oddly silent. "It's fine. I know you aren't a speciest. I've heard about it _every time _my brother got his liberties." she rolled her eyes, a faint smile on her face as she recalled her little brother.

Jaune raised an eyebrow… he knew what a 'speciest' was, of course -he wasn't _that_ dense- and liberties meant when soldiers were allowed off the base… it took an embarrassingly long time for him to make the connection. "Wait… that guy I helped get away was your brother?"

She smiled, "Finally put two and two together, huh? Yeah, James is an asshole sometimes, but he's still my brother. So… thanks, Captain." she trailed off, looking away as a faint pink dusted her cheeks. It'd been a while since she'd met someone so… sincere. In her line of work, most people were backstabbing, two-faced, silver-tongued liars… and she wasn't honestly much better.

"Jaune."

"Hmm?"

"You called me Captain… just call me Jaune. All my friends do," he said, giving her his signature bright smile. That only got Angela to blush harder, her tail unconsciously rubbing against her leg, moving faster at the comment. She looked down, gripping her knee before she chuckled.

"That eager? I'm practically a stranger to you."

"Well, strangers are just friends you haven't met yet, right?" Jaune asked, keeping that same smile on his face as he held out his hand. She turned back to him, her tail nearly brushing against Jaune's outstretched hand for her before she focused, pulling it back behind her. She shook his hand as formally as she could, while Jaune just shook like he did with everyone.

When he leaned back, Jaune reached up, pulling his cowl and goggles back, googles falling around his neck as his cowl flopped against his back. Angela and Dove raised an eyebrow, to which Jaune only shrugged, "What? If we're going to be flying for a while, we may as well get comfortable… Callus had the right idea." he pointed to the (still sleeping) doctor a few seats from them.

Angela nodded a few times, letting her back fall from its perfect straight line for a change. Dove… well, he'd already been fairly relaxed, so there wasn't much he could do. Angela probably _could've_ relaxed more, but she wasn't exactly interested in showing anything more than her tail to Dove and Jaune.

"So, what about you? Your file said you were from Mistral, why'd _you_ leave?" Angela asked, leaning forward and mimicking Jaune's stance… well, besides the fact that her tail as now curled over her knee.

Jaune's smile fell for a moment, "Three of my sisters were artists… after two of them were arrested, my mom said enough was enough. My dad worked for the military as a quartermaster so… I guess it wasn't that hard for him to 'lose' some supplies for us. He packed my uncle, my five sisters, and my mom into a boat headed for Vale."

"What about him?" Angela asked.

"He said he'd meet us here with my sisters," Jaune replied.

"Did he?" Dove asked.

Jaune shook his head, frowning and gripping his hands together, "We've been waiting for four years…" Jaune barely registered the hands-on both of his shoulders, the comforting words from both Angela and Dove. Both knew what it was like to lose family… yet neither knew what it was to be kept waiting for it. Waiting for family that might never return.

Jaune looked up after a second, smiling at the two, "Thanks guys, but I'm okay. It's just… part of me wants to believe he's okay and on his way to Vale right now and the other… well…" he trailed off, not wanting to finish the thought.

Even his _mind_ was prevented from doing so by the sudden sense at the back of his neck. He turned, blinking a few times as he saw Angela's tail rubbing against him. He barely thought as he reached forward, gently trailing a hand down her tail.

Angela didn't say anything, her face turning _bright_ red as she covered her mouth with one hand, fighting down a smile.

Jaune, being the way he was, took this as he was hurting her, and rapidly pulled his hand back. "Sorry, I wasn't thinking! Are you okay?" he asked, standing up and gently laying a hand on her shoulder.

Angela swatted his hand away, sitting down and turning away from him, "I'm fine! Just… it's been a long time since someone… pet me." Angela struggled to get the words out, shivering as she said it. The words 'pet me' had taken on a _very_ different connotation for her during her formative years in Vacuo.

"Sorry, I-"

"You can keep… keep doing it if you want," Angela said, conflicted. On one hand, _anyone_ touching her tail brought up memories she'd… well, rather _not_ relive. Not to _mention_ she was supposed to be an agent, not some house cat to be pet and doted on, to purr on command.

On the other? She _really_ liked the way Jaune was petting her.

Jaune followed her advice, albeit a bit more gently this time. Angela leaned back, fighting down the urge to press against him, rub her head against his side. That was the _other_ issue with someone touching her tail: It brought out the more animalistic side to her. Something she'd worked a _long_ time to suppress.

"So, what's Vacuo like, anyway? I mean, apart from the whole 'really, _really_ speciest' thing," Jaune asked, finally getting Angela to turn and face him, gently running his thumb over her tail.

Angela shrugged, "It was hot during the day, _freezing_ at night. It was filled with criminals, not a lot of jobs to go around, and the alcohol flowed 24/7, whether you were of age or not. It was a glorified shit-hole," she sighed, "But… it was home. It sounds stupid but… I kinda miss it some days. Just something about that life…"

"Freedom?" Jaune asked. Angela only nodded… she might have loved her job, and by _no_ means would she give up what she had now to go back to Vacuo with what she had then… but still. There was a kind of freedom in Vacuo, something she'd yet to see in Vale. If that was good or bad… well, she didn't know.

They lapsed into silence after that, all contemplating what had been said.

…

"Something's off."

Jaune raised an eyebrow as Angela stood, tugging her tail from his hand. It'd been… an hour? An hour and a half? He wasn't sure exactly, but it didn't take him long to figure out where Angela was going with this.

"Yeah… why haven't we landed?" he stood with her, the two looking out the windows on either side of the plane. Angela saw trees, what looked to be a town in the distance, and coastline behind them. She figured the pilot might've overshot and was having to come in at an angle to correct for it.

Jaune, on the other hand, knew _exactly_ what was happening.

"We're in Mistral…" Jaune muttered, eyes widening as he looked out the window. He saw the same things as Angela, but unlike her, he _knew_ what Mistral's forests looked like. Vale forests and Mistral forests were nowhere _near_ the same. The kind of trees _they_ were flying over were only found on the Mistralean mainland.

"What? That's… the pilot must've gotten the wrong message -get your shield! Come on!" she reached for her boot, pulling out a combat knife as Jaune dashed to his shield, slipping it over his shoulder before sprinting back to her.

Jaune took point (rather obviously given he was the guy with the indestructible shield and highly durable armor), creeping his way into the cabin. Angela crept behind him, _far_ more adept at being quiet than the 6'6" captain.

Jaune pushed open the door to the cockpit, raising an eyebrow at the two men. One was just slumped over in his seat, his head leaning to the side like he was asleep while the other piloted the plane.

"Sir?" Jaune asked. The pilot didn't answer as Angela tiptoed her way around Jaune, standing just behind the other man. She leaned forward, gently pressing his head to the side.

A bloody corpse with his throat slit gazed back at her.

"EEK!" Angela and Jaune staggered back, the pilot standing up and tossing his headphones off. He didn't say a word as he charged, eyes zoned in on Angela. Her he could kill, the super soldier? Not so much. He closed the distance in seconds, murder in his eyes as Angela's knife came up to meet his. Both knew she was too late.

**THUNK!**

Thankfully, Jaune had been early.

The knife skidded across the shield as the man staggered back, biting off the end of his knife before reaching beneath his seat, drawing a revolver. Jaune stepped in front of Angela, shield up and head behind it.

**BANG!**

"CALLUS!"

Unfortunately, she wasn't the target.

Jaune charged, slamming the man into the instrument panel, nearly breaking his wrist while wrestling the gun from him. Sirens started going off, warning lights flashed as Jaune tossed the gun away, pulling the assassin/pilot to the ground.

It was only after looking down that he saw the foam from his mouth, saw the blank stare in his eyes, and realized why he'd bit the edge of the knife. Angela confirmed what he was thinking, "Cyanide pill, spy must've realized we were going to catch him. Go see Callus! I'll deal with the plane!" she nearly shouted, tending to the instrument panel as Jaune dashed to the back.

The second he walked in, he knew it was a lost cause. The bullet went right through his nose, flying back out the other side of the plane. It looked like the doctor hadn't even woken up, his eyes still closed… though, that may have been Dove's doing.

Speaking of, the sergeant had gathered his weapons, standing over Callus with a small frown on his face. "Right in the T-box… poor bastard didn't have a chance," Dove muttered, looking down at the now bloody doctor.

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**

Jaune staggered to the ground, vomiting from the sudden rapid shift. He stood after a moment, wiping his mouth before pulling his cowl and goggles back on. He had a bad feeling he'd be needing them.

The two dashed into the front, eyes widening as they saw the explosions out the window, Angela dashing back from the console, "Quick! Look for parachutes!" no one wasted a breath as they turned the plane upside down, each searching for a parachute of some kind.

"Found one!" Dove shouted, holding up a large bag. Angela and Jaune barely acknowledged it, still searching for ones of their own.

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**

Until Dove was whisked out of the plane.

"DOVE!" Jaune shouted, one hand around Angela's wrist, the other grabbing onto a nearby seat. One of the AA shots had scored a direct hit, tearing a giant hole in the side of the plane. Thinking quickly, Angela grabbed one of the falling oxygen masks, fixing one to her face before grabbing another and fixing it to Jaune's.

Neither could hear or speak as the plane careened toward the ground. Angela pulled closer to Jaune, her arms, legs, and tail all wrapping around the closest thing to an anchor she had as Jaune wrapped his shield arm around her back as his other hand shot from the seat to a metal bar near the back of the plane.

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOO- yeah there's a lot more of these, you get the point.**

The AA was deafening, even over the screeching of the plane as it descended it could be heard tearing more holes in the jet. Jaune looked on in horror as the plane broke in half, exposing the large forest they were about to crash into.

All they could do was brace as they hit the ground.


	5. Act I: Chapter 5

**Act I: The Captain**

Chapter Five: Behind Enemy Lines

Sometimes, Jaune hated physics.

The property of inertia, for example. What's in motion will stay in motion, and what's at rest will stay at rest unless acted upon by an external force. It was a natural law that made no exceptions. Rather unfortunate, because he could use an exception right now.

Instead, as the plane crashed into the trees, Jaune kept going, just barely managing to flip himself around so his back hit the tree rather than his shield and —by extension— Angela. He slammed into the ground, pain shooting up his back as he left a trail akin to a meteorite almost forty feet back from the plane itself.

Inertia reared its ugly head when the plane slid right over him.

He froze, afraid to even move as he forced his head into the soft dirt, eyes watching as metal slid just past his vision. After a few seconds, the metal was replaced with a tree canopy… well, through even _more_ metal patchworked over them anyway.

"We're alive… we're alive! Angela did… Angela?" Jaune looked down, eyes wide as he saw the tiger faunus leaning against his chest, eyes shut, immobile.

He slammed his hands against the metal above him, straining his muscles as he forced the scrap off of him and to the side. He shoved it to the side before turning back to the girl, who's body had just flopped over into the trail he'd created.

"Oh no… oh nonononono Angela! Come on, get up! Please don't be dead!" Jaune dashed to her side, worry painting his features as he tried to recall what little medical training he'd been given over the years. He flipped her over before pressing his ear to her chest, all the while fearing she was already gone.

"Ugh… oow…"

"Angela!" Jaune didn't think as he wrapped his arms around her, lifting her out of the dirt. The faunus froze for a second, looking around to try and remember where she was before reciprocating Jaune's hug, awkwardly patting him on the back a few times.

Jaune leaned back, "Are you okay —actually don't answer that, we just fell out of a plane so you're probably _really_ not okay, but I mean are you in pain? Actually, scratch that too, you probably —just please tell me you aren't going to die in ten seconds." Jaune scrambled for his words, his mind too flooded with fear, relief, and who knows _what_ else to respond properly.

Angela shook her head, "Leg…" she turned to look down. Jaune followed her gaze, over her torn pants up to her thigh, and the large piece of metal stabbed into it. He quickly looked down at his legs, raising an eyebrow when he saw no such damage… then he remembered what his suit was made of and realized _why_ he saw no damage.

Angela grit her teeth, "We need to ge-AAH!" she fell against Jaune's shoulder, her leg bleeding even more as she tried to stand up. Bullets of sweat formed on her forehead as she grunted, trying to take even one step.

Jaune shook his head, letting his shield fall to the ground, "You're not going anywhere with your leg the way it is. Hold on, let me find-"

"Leave me."

Jaune froze, turning back to see the faunus closing her eyes, hand feeling for her waist to find nothing. He asked her to repeat herself,

"I said… leave me. I'll… slow you down. You need to get out of here before… before they…"

Jaune shook his head, hoisting her into his arms bridal style, "I'm not leaving you behind. Come on, we need to find some gauze or some kind of…" Jaune trailed off, looking down at her.

Angela's face went _bright_ red as she realized what he was thinking. Though —given any actual gauze was likely buried in rubble and she knew they were on a time crunch— she nodded, "Just… watch where you put your hands."

Jaune nodded, gently setting her on the ground before working her pants off, Angela looking away all the while. Jaune took the knife she still had from before and cut what was left of them into ribbons of cloth, looking around for a second, "There's got to be… ah-ha!" Jaune dashed through the rubble, right to a small, red spot on the ground.

Lifting the rubble revealed it to be a _very_ smashed first aid kit, with the rubbing alcohol running over just about everything and the gauze nowhere to be seen. That proved to be more of a blessing than a curse, Jaune soaking the least bloody ribbons to disinfect them, dashing back to Angela.

"OW! AH!" Angela screamed as Jaune wrapped the strips around the injury, quickly pulling the blade from her thigh before wrapping that as well. Jaune frowned as he ran out of clean clothes, the rest either soaked in blood or too small to work for such a large wound.

He debated about it for maybe a second before he grabbed the hem of Angela's shirt. She didn't say a word, lifting her arms and letting Jaune slip it off her, wrapping the wound in it before tying it as tight as he could. He knew it would need pressure for a while, and that they needed to _move_.

Jaune picked her up bridal style again, looking around for a moment. "Which way?" he asked. If it were in any other context than 'life or death on the run situation', Jaune would've been a blushing mess about holding a girl in nothing but a pair of black underwear and a matching bra. Of course, _now_ was not the time for embarrassment.

Now was the time to _run_.

"There was… a village that way." Angela pointed off into the distance. Jaune nodded, taking his shield from the ground before sliding it into place on his back, dashing across the rubble.

"You! Stop right there!"

Until he heard _that_.

Jaune froze, turning around to see a squad of Mistralean soldiers walking toward him. Once upon a time, they were a vision of hope and inspiration for him… yet now looking at them brought only dread.

The soldier approached, rifle drawn as he gazed at the two, "Put her down and put your hands in the air." Jaune obeyed, gently setting Angela on the ground, despite her weak protest. Jaune held his hands up, eyes widening a little as he got an idea.

He pulled his hands further back, making it look like he was putting them behind his head. In actuality, his hands were both gripping his shield. His eyes flicked between the soldiers, his mind analyzing the situation faster than he'd ever been able to before.

He got on one knee, leaning down before throwing the shield at a nearby tree. Before the soldier could react he dashed at him, delivering a haymaker to the first before grabbing him by the excess fabric of his shirt, hurling him at two others.

His shield ricocheted off the tree, slamming into one soldier's head before hitting against another tree, taking down the one aiming at Jaune. Said man dashed forward, grabbing the head of the last conscious one before tossing him to the ground, grabbing his shield before slamming it on his face, knocking him out. He looked around for a moment, eyes widening as he realized what had just happened.

He'd knocked out five soldiers in just three seconds.

"How did you… know that would happen?" Angela asked as Jaune grabbed the tallest soldier, one that looked to be almost his height, with a little bit broader shoulders. He shrugged as he started stripping the man down, fully intending to capitalize on the situation.

"I don't know… it was _weird_ like I… like I could _see_ the lines where the shield would go -like I knew exactly how hard to throw it and everything… guessing the serum did something to my head, too," Jaune said, muttering the last phrase. Callus would've had a _field_ _day_ with what just happened if he wasn't buried somewhere in the rubble and, well… _dead_, of course.

Angela raised an eyebrow as Jaune pulled the soldier's uniform over his own, hiding the shield beneath his jacket before picking up the rifle. "Are you… _that _embarrassed to change in front of me?" she asked, a little smirk on her face despite her weak voice. She'd lost a fair bit of blood already, and it was honestly a miracle she was still conscious.

Jaune shook his head, "No… well yes, but that's not the _main_ reason. I'm keeping the suit so I'm still protected if someone decides to shoot at me, but I can still stay disguised as a Mistralean soldier." he explained, picking her up again.

Angela leaned her head against Jaune's chest, letting her eyes slip shut as he started running, trying to ignore the searing pain in her leg. She focused on the steady heartbeat against her ear, a small smile on her face as she heard it thump on. A good distraction, something to keep her mind focused on… well, _anything_ other than her current situation.

Jaune, meanwhile, was more focused on trying to get to the nearby village. A few things were on his mind… okay, a _lot_ of things were on his mind, but right now he needed to figure out a few things. First off, where he was. Second, where he could get some clothes for Angela. A mistralean soldier? He'd be fine. A half-naked tiger faunus? She wasn't blending in _anywhere_… well, anywhere he'd be _going_ anyway.

He ran a few minutes before he, at last, cleared the forest, stopping as he reached a dirt road. "There you are," Jaune muttered, seeing the village in the distance. He walked off to the side a bit, close enough to the forest that he could duck into it if he saw a car coming, or at the very least put Angela down in the tall grass and act like he was just a soldier out for a walk.

He had to duck into the forest a minute later, watching a large convoy of soldiers heading for the crash site. He waited a few minutes after, looking down and feeling Angela's pulse to make sure she was still alive before he went back to walking on the side road again.

He stopped near the edge of the village, _just_ at the edge of the woods surrounding it. "Angela… do you think you'll be okay if I leave you here for a bit? I'll get you some clothes before I come back, don't worry." he said, frowning at the wounded girl.

She smirked, "If you get me some slutty outfit, I _will_ smack you." Jaune chuckled at that, nodding a few times before he stood, shouldering his rifle before walking for the village.

"Okay Jaune, just blend in, and act natural," Jaune muttered to himself, walking around the corner of a building into the village. He saw a few people on the street, most of them greeting him with a friendly —if restrained— wave. A few children playing in the street, dashing past him.

"OW!"

And then a soccer ball hit him in the face.

He looked down, leaning over and picking up the ball before looking around a moment. It seemed like the entire _town_ had frozen, all of them looking at one another for a moment, holding their breath. Jaune raised an eyebrow, looking around for a moment, the kids from before frozen stiff.

Jaune dropped the ball, smiling as he kicked it back to them. Two of them scrambled back, disappearing into a nearby house while the last two just stared at him. The older one —or at least the taller one, Jaune _guessed_ he was older— slowly approached the ball, gently picking it up.

Before he could do anything, a large woman bust down the door, tan face going pale as she saw him. She dashed to the boy, grabbing the ball before ushering the two still out there inside. Then she turned to him, "I'm so sorry! You know how young boys are —no respect for authority! I'll be sure this—"

"Woah! Woah! It was an accident, it's okay," Jaune said. Why was everyone so worked up about this? It was _one_ soccer ball. As he said that, a few people started whispering, gazing at him as if he'd grown a second head (he was _fairly_ certain he'd know if _that_ was a side effect of the serum).

The woman's eyes widened as she motioned him inside, grabbing his wrist and dragging him. He didn't resist, more curious about what was going on than anything. Walking in revealed it to be a rather simple home, the living room furnished with… well, a few chairs. No decorations or _anything_ —likely taken down after the no arts acts that had gotten his sisters arrested.

She turned, "You're not a soldier. If you were, you'd have killed my boys just then." she was whispering as if everything she said was putting her in danger… which, based on what she said, probably wasn't far from the truth.

"_What_!?"

Jaune thought that was a fair reaction. Killing kids for accidentally hitting him with a _soccer ball_? What was he, some kind of _monster_!? Though, based on the woman's slow nodding, some Mistraleans were, "Last month the council passed new legislation. They widened the no expression laws to include jovial expressions as well… this village has lost too many young ones to that alone."

Jaune was… well, horrified seemed an _understatement_. He knew Mistral wasn't _perfect_ but… _how_? How could they have done something _this_ bad? How were they getting _away_ with it!? "That's… that's just _wrong_! How can they be enforcing this —_who_ thinks this is a good idea!?" Jaune was shouting now, unable to help himself.

The woman shushed him, looking around for a moment before she sighed, "It's wartime. The people are scared. A small price to pay, they say… listen to me," she leaned in, "I don't know who you are. I don't know why you're here, but I -my children -this _village_ needs help. _Please_," she fell to her knees, hands clasped as they hit against Jaune's stomach, tears clouding her vision, "I _beg_ you, _help_ us."

Jaune grit his teeth, eyes set in a steely determination as he nodded. "I'll help in any way I can… but I need your help, too. A friend of mine, like me she… she's hurt. Badly. She needs a doctor and some new clothes, can you help me with that?" he asked.

The woman smiled at him, standing before wrapping her arms around the taller man. "You help us, and I will help you in _any _way I can. I'll call the doctor right now, just bring your friend here," she said, dashing into the next room.

Jaune nodded a few times, "What's your name, by the way?" if he was going to be working with this woman… or helping her or, _whatever_ he was going to be doing —he figured he should at _least_ know her name.

She walked back in, holding out her hand. "I'm Emilia. Emilia Daichi. Who are you?" Jaune shook her hand, smiling at her.

"I'm Captain Arc. You can just call me Jaune," he said. Emilia nodded a few times, walking back into the other room and grabbing the phone.

Jaune, meanwhile, walked back outside, making his way toward Angela. It didn't take long, of course, only a few minutes of walking before he found her. She looked up at him, "Let me guess, nothing?" she asked.

Jaune shook his head, "I found a doctor to look at your leg. No point being clothed if you die in an hour." he lifted her again, making his way toward the village. Angela, never one to miss a chance at a jab, only smirked at him.

"Not much confidence in your surgery, huh?"

"Being careful never killed anybody."

Angela nodded as they approached the village. She looked at the people, watching them whispering… though, from what she could hear, most were focused on Jaune rather than her. _That_ was new, she had to admit. Were the Mistralean soldiers so feared that it eclipsed even people's hatred of _faunus_? Now _that_ was impressive.

Jaune walked through the door, seeing Emilia walk back in, laying the phone down. "I just got off the phone with the doctor, he'll be here in five minutes." she looked between them for a moment, "You two, follow." she turned, walking past what Jaune guessed was her children's room before entering a small, barren space.

She got on her knees, feeling along the floor for a moment before lifting a trap door, turning around and climbing down the ladder. When she got to the floor, she held up her hands. Jaune understood the gesture, gently passing Angela down there before jumping down himself, closing the hatch on his way down.

Emilia handed her back, a finger to her lips a moment later, "Be _very_ quiet down here. Always a chance someone's listening," she whispered. Jaune nodded, following the woman down the wooden halls and a set of stairs, until at last she reached up, turning an oil lantern on to reveal… a workshop.

There was a loom, a spinning circle, totes full of thread and fabrics —even a few shirts already on display. Jaune turned to Emilia, "You're a seamstress?" he was honestly rather surprised. He'd thought the profession had been unceremoniously killed off after the no expression laws were signed.

She shook her head, "_Used_ to be. Mistral shuts down people like me so people can only buy what _they_ sell them. It's all I can do, so I keep making them. Keep selling in secret. I'm sure I've got something to fit your friend captain." at that, she started sorting through the shirts available, frowning as she looked at each one.

She looked through a few before, at last, producing what looked to be a black sweater and a pair of jeans. Angela looked over, nodding a few times as she squirmed in Jaune's arms, trying to get up.

Jaune only held tighter, "Don't move, you might make your wound worse. Wait until the doctor gets here to dress it properly." Angela glared up at him for a second before she sighed, leaning against his chest. If he were anyone else, she'd think he was trying to see her in this half-dressed state longer… that thought was shot down the second she saw the worry in his eyes.

The knocking came a few minutes later, Emilia dashing to the trap door before climbing up. Jaune looked at Angela, "You're gonna be okay… everything's going to be fine." he tried to keep his voice steady, to hide the panic he was feeling. They were behind enemy lines, little supplies, and had _no_ idea who they could trust —if _anyone_.

Angela frowned at him, "Trying to convince me, or you?"

"Both, actually."

Jaune turned when he heard the trap door open, Emilia tailed by a taller man in a simple white coat, not at all dissimilar to the one Dr. Callus and his mother wore. Dark eyes flicked over Angela for a moment before he walked to Jaune, gently taking her from his hands before clearing off some space on a nearby counter, getting out his kit.

Emilia, meanwhile, led Jaune out near the back way, out into what Jaune guessed was the side of a hill. He saw the coastline of Mistral laid out before him, sand and water as far as the eye could see.

Emilia frowned, "I was born here forty years ago. This place is my home… look down there," she pointed to the nearby beach, just behind which there was a rather large, gray building surrounded by barbed wire. A prison, if Jaune had to guess. "My oldest son… well, he took after his father. When he was drafted, he refused. Rallied a little militia… if they aren't dead, _that's_ where they are."

She turned to Jaune, "I don't care how you do it… but _please_, bring me my son." her eyes were what got to Jaune the most. The begging and pleading eyes that held barely even a _spark_ of hope in them. Emilia was grasping at straws, and she _knew_ it. Even _Jaune_ could tell she didn't have much hope that her son was still alive.

The thought of refusing her didn't even cross Jaune's mind, "I'll get him back. I promise." he laid a hand on her shoulder, small comfort to a woman that had lost her son. She turned to look up at him, nodding a few times.

"Thank you, Captain Arc," she said, giving him a small smile. Jaune nodded a few times, returning the smile before he looked back into the home… er, cellar anyway. He frowned as he thought of Angela, of Dove…

"Can you do something for me while I'm gone?" he asked. Emilia raised an eyebrow, asking what it was.

"If you find a man named Dove Bronzewing, tell him to wait here for me."


	6. Act I: Chapter 6

**Act I: The Captain**

Chapter Six: Infiltration

"Okay Jaune, calm down… stick to the plan."

Jaune muttered, walking along the road to the prison, rifle over his shoulder. He knew what he needed to do: Find Kura Daichi, get him out. There were… a _few_ problems with that, of course. There was only _one_ flaw in the plan:

Literally _all_ of it.

Sneaking in with the soldier outfit _might_ work, but getting him out was going to be a _lot_ more difficult. Not to mention, he barely knew what the boy _looked_ like. His description was tanned skin, black hair, and brown eyes… not exactly _that_ helpful unless he went around to almost everyone in the prison and kept asking who they were.

"Hey! Buddy!"

Jaune froze, turning to see a truck pull up next to him. Five Mistalrean soldiers were in the seats, a few looking up from their rifles at him. There was another leaning out from the back of the jeep, patting the side of it.

That one smiled, "Heading for guard duty, right? Hop on, we'll give you a lift." … it took Jaune a few seconds before he nodded, hopping into the back with the other soldier. His hand instinctively grabbed the bar on the side as the jeep started moving.

The soldier next to him looked over, reaching into his pocket and grabbing a pack of cigarettes, "You got a lighter by chance?" Jaune patted his pockets for a few seconds before he shook his head, giving an apologetic smile.

The other soldier frowned, tossing his cigarettes back in his pocket before he leaned back, seemingly not at all concerned about falling out. "You a new transfer, kid? What's your name?" he asked. Jaune panicked for a moment before discreetly looking away, in reality looking down at the nametag on his uniform.

Jaune came up with the best cover he could, "I'm Jack. Jack Hori." … maybe not the _best_ cover, but at the same time. The man looked at him for a second, raising an eyebrow.

"You forget your name a lot?"

Jaune… didn't know how to answer that.

After a few seconds, the man slapped his shoulder, laughing, "Sure your name ain't John? Cause you sure look like you got his letter!" all the soldiers laughed at that one, the truck slowing as they neared the prison entrance.

Another soldier approached from the side, looking over the group, "Tag's, gentlemen?" he asked. Jaune felt his heart skip a beat. This outfit was almost complete… that being said, he _had_ to leave the dog tags on the soldier he got the uniform from, didn't he?

Fortunately, some of the others had his back, "Hey come on James, it's _us_. You know we all have 'em," the one driving said, a chorus of agreement rising from the others. Jaune just looked aside, making sure not to show his face to the guard.

The guard slowly shook his head, "Alright, fine. If anyone asks who gave you clearance…" he trailed off.

"It wasn't James." the soldiers repeated in unison.

James nodded a few times, "Alright, good… now get going before someone sees," he opened the gate for them, the jeep driving through as James turned, Jaune forcing himself not to make eye contact. He could almost _feel_ the man's eyes on him, but apparently, he wasn't all that concerned. What was one more soldier, right?

Jaune froze as he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned, letting out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding when he saw the other soldier smiling at him, "Never been here before huh? Don't worry, James is pretty easy going. Just watch out for the warden. She looks pretty as hell, but _damn_ you don't wanna piss her off. Right boys?"

The other soldiers nodded a few times, sharing a nervous laugh as each looked around, scanning for the woman in question. Jaune gulped, looking around as well. If this warden was able to make all these trained soldiers _that_ nervous…

Jaune's thoughts trailed off, only drawn from them when he felt the jeep stop. He felt that same soldier pat his shoulder, "Hey, you can daydream later Jack. Come on, I'll show you to the barracks." he hopped off, motioning for Jaune to follow.

As the group made their way toward what Jaune guessed were the barracks, he couldn't help but notice the state of the prison. The people laying back on metal sheets that he guessed were supposed to be beds, the corroding iron bars —he swore he counted at least _three_ rats running around.

The group froze, Jaune raising an eyebrow as he saw the reason. A woman walked toward them, clad entirely in a black uniform much like his own, other than hers had what looked to be handcuffs with a broken chain on her wrists, her collar pinned tight around her neck with a Mistralean symbol.

Sharp blue eyes glared at the soldiers as they all lined up against the wall, saluting her… Jaune followed suit after a second, watching the short, black-haired woman approach him. She looked over his figure for a moment before turning to the others.

"Johnson! Who is this man!?" she shouted, her voice high and clear over the background noise. The man that Jaune had been talking to the entire time —the one that had sat in the back with him— stepped forward.

"This is Private Hori ma'am! He's a new transfer!" he nearly shouted, his back straighter than Jaune thought even possible a few moments ago. The warden glared at him for a moment before turning her eyes back to Jaune, trailing up and down his figure.

She grabbed his shoulder, pulling the unprepared Jaune down with surprising strength, "Alright private, you're new here, so I'll explain something. If I give you an order, you _follow_ it. If you see me, you _will_ salute me until I tell you otherwise. If a prisoner makes a break for the exit, me, or another soldier, you _shoot_ them. Understand?" she asked.

Jaune nodded. Despite his improved physical abilities, the nearly bullet-proof suit beneath his uniform (and _actually_ bulletproof shield beneath _that_), he was _terrified_ of the little woman. He'd give credit to Johnson, she was pretty as hell, but also just as _terrifying_.

She let go of him, "Good. Now, the six of you switch into your guard outfits! Go! GO!" she shouted, the six dashing off to what Jaune guessed was the barracks… or whatever the equivalent of it would be in prison anyway.

When they walked through that door, it was like walking into another world. The floor was tile and spotless, orderly lockers and benches everywhere with a few stalls off to the side. The soldiers were quick to change, Jaune standing there for a moment before walking around the lockers, looking over each one (more to buy time than anything, he assumed he didn't have a locker here).

"What's wrong Hori? Lost your key?" Johnson asked, gesturing to the locker next to the one Jaune was inspecting. He looked over, seeing it was labeled —sure enough— Pvt. Hori. Jaune wasn't sure if it was a lucky break or a _very_ unlucky one given what he was wearing beneath his soldier garb.

Johnson walked over, pounding on the top of the locker a few times until it popped open. He smiled at him, "Don't worry about it, these old things come open easy enough. Now get dressed, I'll wait outside for ya." at that the five walked out, leaving Jaune on his own.

Jaune grabbed the gear inside and walked to the nearby stall, _just_ in case someone decided to walk in and see the multiple Vale insignia's on his definitely _not_ mistralean uniform.

When he walked out, he looked like he was ready for a riot. The black helmet with the glass plate to be pulled over his face, the 12 gauge shotgun to replace his rifle, the relatively heavy body armor (also black) with the mistral insignia on the chest, the baton and taser —all _screamed_ riot police.

He stepped out into the hallway, seeing his similarly dressed companions standing there, Johnson waving him on. "Come on, Jack! Warden's office is upstairs, can't miss it. First day you'll report to her. Meet us at lunch, we'll talk later!" Jaune returned Johnson's wave as he started walking up the stairs, the others going about their tasks.

"He seems friendly enough…" Jaune muttered, walking down the upstairs hall toward the warden's office. He wouldn't expect the 'tyrannical arm of the mistralean government' -as his sisters would always put it- to be so… well, _human_. He shouldn't have been surprised but… still.

He knocked on the door of the warden's office, "Elizabeth Gentry, huh? Weird name…" Jaune muttered, waiting for a moment before the door swung open. Sure enough, there was the warden herself, looking up at him.

Several seconds of silence later, Jaune spoke, "Umm, I was told to report to you, ma'am?" Jaune wasn't sure what power was telling him to apologize to her, despite the fact he'd done exactly as Johnson had told him.

The woman looked at him for a moment before she nodded, turning and walking back inside. Jaune followed, closing the door behind him. She took a seat behind a perfectly ordered desk, motioning for him to sit in the chair across. Jaune complied, flicking on the safety before laying his shotgun on the floor.

The warden looked him over for a moment, "Have you ever killed anyone, private?" Jaune was… well, rather caught off guard by the statement. It wasn't necessarily an _odd_ question in wartime, but what got him was how _casual_ she said it. It was like they were talking about the weather.

"No ma'am." of course, that had to be his response. As far as he knew, _he_ hadn't killed anyone. The plane crash had likely killed the assassin, and he hadn't bothered checking if the men in the forest were alive or not. Of course, Hori had been alive when he stripped him, so he assumed the others were fine as well.

The warden frowned, "Dammit. I keep asking them _not_ to send the green ones here. You'll break in a week if you've got a strong stomach. Come on, I'll start you off easy enough." she jumped from her chair, walking and gesturing for Jaune to follow.

Jaune did so, trying not to imagine what kind of horrible things people must see if they needed to be seasoned veterans just to make it as _guards_ in this prison —let _alone_ how the prisoners must be treated.

The two walked down the stairs, through a few corridors until at last the warden stopped, gesturing to a nearby cell. "Your job is simple, and I'll be accompanying you for it. We're going to bring a prisoner from cellblock A to cellblock B. They're already restrained, so your job is to aim your gun at them and shoot if they try to attack anyone, understand?" Jaune, of course, nodded in compliance. It seemed easy enough.

Internally, however, it was a different story. Was he going to be able to do it? If they tried anything, would he pull the trigger? He needed time to figure out where Emilia's son was, but… was he willing to go _that_ deep undercover?

The warden nodded a few times, reaching into her pocket and producing a single key, unlocking the cell. "Is that a master key?" Jaune asked. The warden nodded, giving him a slight glare before stepping aside, motioning for Jaune to go in.

Jaune complied, eyes widening as he saw the man within. He could _easily_ count each of his ribs, his eyes sunk into his skull and lips broke so many times they looked to be covered in only scar tissue. His back was torn raw, chains on his ankles and hands rubbing raw the skin they surrounded. The man's hair was ratty brown, torn in many places, vaguely combed over to have some sense of normalcy.

"Kill him."

"What?" Jaune turned, eyes wide as he saw the warden slam the cell door shut, locking it back with her key. She repeated her phrase, a small, sadistic smirk on her face as she took a step back.

"You heard me, Private. Kill him," she said, leaning against the opposite wall, a smug look on her face as the man looked up at Jaune, grabbing his shoulders. The man started begging for his life, pleading with Jaune to spare him. Jaune heard none of it, only turning to the warden with disbelief on his face.

"Either you kill him now, or he dies on his own. This door isn't opening until someone is _dead_," to say the warden's eyes were gleeful was an _understatement_. She looked like a child on Christmas morning, savoring the few moments before she unwrapped her presents. Eager, impatient, excited. She was insane, Jaune decided. She was absolutely _insane_.

He walked to the door, hands gripping the bars. She stared, unamused. "I told you. No one leaves until one of you is _dead_. Kill him… well, I suppose you _do_ have another option," she muttered, smirking as she gazed behind him. Jaune turned his head, eyes widening as he saw the prisoner lift his shotgun.

"Sorry… it's you or me."

**BANG!**


	7. Act I: Chapter 7

**Act I: The Captain**

Chapter Seven: Exfiltration

**(a/n- Since it apparently wasn't that clear, the gun the prisoner fired wasn't his, it was the shotgun Jaune was carrying that he put down to grip the bars of the cell)**

Twelve metal pellets floated in the air.

A frown graced the warden's features, the pellets floating over her outstretched hand. They started circling over it as she spoke, "Oh, Aaron… as rebellious as the day we met…" she held out her hand, the wicked smirk returning, "How about I _break_ you again?"

The pellets clattered to the ground, the insane woman holding out her hand. Jaune took a risk and turned, eyes wide as he saw the older prison fall, gripping his head as tears of blood fell from his cheeks. Blood-curdling screams followed shortly afterward, the man's body convulsing on the ground. Jaune turned to the warden,

"Stop! You'll kill him!"

"Exactly. _This_ is what happens when you hesitate around here."

Jaune barely thought as he picked up the shotgun, firing a shell at the woman. She had to be stopped, he had to do _something_.

Unfortunately, Jaune didn't learn from history.

A splitting headache brought him to his knees, hands pressing into his temples as he tried to crush his skull. A thousand daggers ran across his brain, prodding into every spot they could find. The warden giggled, "Well well, _you've_ got a stronger mind than I thought. Like hitting little tubes of concrete… but you're still _vulnerable_." the pain doubled.

Jaune fought it, slowly standing as he gazed at the sadistic woman, her eyes flashing red, "Oh? Now _that's_ interesting. I thought _I_ was Callus's only guinea pig… should've expected he'd find a new one. One that's… a mistralean exile? Jaune Arc? You came here with -oh stop struggling to think of something else, it won't work… hmm…"

For a split second, Jaune was in control. He could fight the pain _just_ long enough to do something. The shotgun was pointless against a woman that could apparently block bullets _and_ read his mind. His shield would take too long… so, naturally, Jaune did something she never expected:

Broke the cell door and used it as a battering ram.

Jaune saw the confidence waiver, saw her eyes widen as she tried to move her field over, blocking the bars. She was fast, but Jaune was faster. His hand slammed her face into the wall before she could shift her barrier over, knocking the two of them to the ground.

Jaune stood, turning around to see the prisoner -Aaron based on the mad warden's ramblings- lying on the floor still. Jaune walked to him, frowning as he laid a hand on his neck. No pulse. No breathing.

Jaune closed his eyes, "You weren't the first… but I promise you'll be the last." it was then that Jaune made a decision. One that would impact his entire future, shaping the very fabric of Mistral itself. No one deserved the kind of torture the warden had placed on him and Aaron.

"I'll free them… _all_ of them."

Jaune lifted the small warden, barely looking as he tossed her unconscious form next to Aaron's body. He slammed the bars back into the wall, taking his shotgun and the warden's master key from the cell.

"Yo! Jack!" Jaune froze, turning to see Johnson and the others walking toward him. Two of them had their helmets on, with the rest carrying them at their side. Johnson walked up to him, "See you survived the warden. So, what block's she got you going to?" he asked, leaning against a nearby wall.

Jaune gulped, "I uh… she didn't say. She said I uh… I had to find 'Kura Daichi'? Know who that is?" he tried to play it off, but based on the shocked looks of the group, he'd said _something_ that tipped them off.

Johnson explained what it was, "Damn… she called them by name and _everything_. Sounds like she's throwing you out of the frying pan and into the _fire_ with this one. Anybody know which cell Daichi's in?" he turned back to the others, all but one shaking their heads.

The tallest of the group -a black-haired, brown-eyed man- responded, "He's in cell block D, think it's the one closest to the entrance. If he's not there, odds are he's in solitary. He's a little trouble maker."

Johnson smiled at him, "Thanks Goro! You guys head on without me, I'll make sure Cracker-Jack here gets there alright." if they didn't have them already, the group pulled on their riot helmets, heading for what Jaune guessed was either the front gate or another cell block. He thanked his lucky stars they didn't look to their right and see the warden lying unconscious.

Johnson started walking the opposite direction, Jaune following close behind. He pocketed the warden's master key as Johnson talked, rambling on about this and that as Jaune threw out a few words here and there, acting like he was paying attention.

In reality, he was looking at the prisoners. So many were young, skin and bones, he could swear there were people younger than _him_ locked away in here. Some of them were gripping their heads, muttering under their breath, eyes wide as they gazed at the ground. Victims of the warden's strange powers, no doubt.

"Here we are, Jack. Just ask some of the guards on duty, they'll tell you. Hey, when you get a chance, meet me and the boys at the cafeteria, alright?" Johnson said, patting his shoulder. Jaune nodded a few times, telling him he would as the man sauntered off, putting his helmet back on.

Jaune, meanwhile, turned his attention to the cell block. Looking at the two cells nearest the entrance revealed an old man and an empty cell. Either the other man was wrong, or he was in solitary.

He turned to the nearest guard, a shorter man standing at attention between two cells. The man looked him over before his eyes resumed scanning the block, stalling for only a moment on some of the prisoners.

Jaune cleared his throat, "Hey, uh… do you know where I can find Kura Daichi? The warden's looking for him." the man just pointed off to his right, toward a large wing separate from the others, labeled 'SOLITARY' in big, bold letters over the arch.

"Guess he was right," Jaune muttered as he approached. He'd thought that the rest of the prison was bad, what with the way the warden seemed to care so little for her prisoners, how the guards were ordered to shoot at too much provocation and all that.

But solitary was a _nightmare_.

The cell doors were so small Jaune wasn't even sure he could _fit_ through them. Each door had four different locks on it and a small slot near the bottom (also with a lock) likely for food. There were dried, bloody handprints on the wall, and the scent told him this place hadn't been cleaned in _years_. Blood, feces, urine, tears -he could smell them all on the walls.

He walked to the end where a single woman with a gas mask on (given the smell, he couldn't blame her) sat behind a desk, turning her attention to him. He looked around at the doors, "I uh… I'm here for Kura Daichi." he was hoping the direct approach would work.

The woman looked up, "Paperwork?" her voice was raspy and hollow, distorted by the mask. Jaune froze… in hindsight, he _probably_ should've guessed a government prison (manned by the army no less) would have its fair share of paperwork.

The secretary sighed in her mask, rubbing off the front of it with a cloth so she could still see. "New transfer, right?" Jaune nodded. _That_ was a cover story he could remember, and one he could actually act out.

She sighed, standing up and grabbing a key, "I swear she _always_ does this. These are important Cerberus assets! Not her damn training dummies!" the woman threw her hands in the air, clearly frustrated. She stopped at the cell with the number '12' painted on it.

Though, there was something else Jaune was curious about, "Cerberus assets?" he asked. The woman looked at him for a moment before turning back to the door, undoing all but the last lock.

She turned back to Jaune, "They're an Atlesian company. Took two orphans from North mistral and turned them into me and my sister. Some of them like having prisoners instead of orphans… whatever helps them sleep at night," she turned, unlocking the door fully before stepping back.

Jaune coughed, reeling at the stench. He thought it was bad in the _hallway_, but in the room, it smelled like something was _dead_. Through a faint, green mist a black-haired, brown-eyed man staggered out, spitting up blood on the ground.

"Well? Going to shoot him or not?"

Jaune raised an eyebrow, trying to hide his panic as he turned to the woman. He had to think quick. Think like a psychopath… like a psychopath…

"Uh, no. The warden wants to see to it herself. Said this was a… personal, matter," Jaune said. The terror that filled Kura's eyes was something Jaune could never forget. The eyes of a man that would sooner take a shotgun bullet than deal with the warden herself.

Fortunately, the secretary bought it, "Ugh, I've _got_ to have words with her about this. That's the fourth subject this quarter! How are we supposed to test the neuro-toxin when she keeps killing all our test subjects!?" she stormed off the other direction, leaving Jaune to deal with Kura.

Naturally, the first thing he did was get him to his feet. Kura looked at him, "Just shoot me, I can't go back to that she-devil again, I-"

"Relax, your mother sent me."

Kura froze, eyes flicking up for a moment before turning back to him, "What about the warden?"

"I uh… may have knocked her out and… stolen her key."

That got a little smile out of him… though, it quickly turned to a frown, "That means we don't have long… do you have a plan for getting us out alive?" he asked.

Jaune shook his head, "Honestly? I was hoping you'd have a plan to get _everyone_ out alive -prisoners included." Kura's eyes widened at that one, looking over his uniform once again before turning his attention back ahead of them.

He leaned in, "Not a _plan_ per se… how good are you with a shotgun?" Jaune shrugged… he wasn't quite sure how to answer that. He wasn't a _terrible_ shot, but he wasn't sure how much help he'd be against all the guards.

Kura shook his head, "Nevermind. Around the yard exits most of the guards will have their batons out, it'll take them a second to go for their guns. _Upstairs_ is a problem. They all have rifles at the ready. I'll trigger a riot downstairs if you can deal with the guards upstairs."

Jaune couldn't believe he was agreeing to something so _insane_. A bunch of prisoners rioting against the full might of the Mistralean armed forces? _How_ could this end well?

Though the second they got outside, he understood why Kura was so confident. There were only eight guards (four for each entrance) with fifteen on the upper floors. Meanwhile, there were at _least_ a hundred prisoners, maybe more, crammed into the yard.

Kura stepped back, staggering a bit as he stood on his own, "Those guards upstairs have to go _quickly_, understand? Otherwise, it'll give the ones down below time to prepare." Jaune nodded a few times, making his way up the stairs.

When the got there, the first thing he did was pull off his bulletproof vest, laying it and his shotgun off to the side. He turned, time seemingly slowing as he gazed around, his mind analyzing his shield's impact on the concrete, bars, and of course the guard's heads.

"EVERYONE! LISTEN TO ME!"

Jaune froze, his hand an inch over his shield as Kura shouted from below. People started gathering, the guards suddenly a bit more alert than before. Kura started shouting about Mistral, calling for an uprising -all the while Jaune couldn't help but wonder if _this_ was the plan.

He turned his eyes away, gazing at the soldiers above. Suddenly, all those calculations Jaune's brain had made earlier were rendered useless, his shield thrown at one of the guards that were aiming at Kura.

The man fell back, the shield flying back at Jaune as the rest of the guards turned to him.

"Uh-oh."

Every gun turned on him.

Jaune dove to the ground, shield covering his face and organs as bullets tore past him, through his Mistralean soldier uniform, and broke on his shield. He waited, slowly rising as he saw the soldiers stepping back, their eyes wide as a few started reloading.

He felt his mistralean uniform (well, at least the bits that weren't covered) fall off, only scraps of it remaining as he pulled the outfit's hood and goggles back on. He turned, raising his shield as one of the soldiers tried to bash him with the stock of his gun.

He slammed his fist into their stomach, sending them over the edge into the prisoners, who'd had the presence of mind to start Kura's riot. Jaune, meanwhile, threw his shield at one of the men about to shoot at him, grabbing the nearest guard's rifle and breaking it over his head, using the shattered barrel to knock another's teeth out.

Jaune grabbed the man's head, knocking three guards over before holding out a hand, his shield flying back to him before he turned again, blocking someone's bullets from point-blank range. He bashed his shield into them before they could reload, sending him to the ground where he stomped on his stomach.

He turned, kicking backward as someone charged him with a knife, apparently thinking that was a good idea. He turned, slamming the shield over their head as they crumpled over the railing, falling to the riot prisoners below.

Speaking of, the riot was going shockingly well. With all the guns trained on Jaune, the prisoners had been able to take the bottom floor rather easily. The guards hadn't stood a chance. Most of the prisoners, of course, were booking it for the exit. However, the few that stayed -most of which had been captured along with Kura's militia- were heading for Jaune.

The man in question was busy throwing his shield, calculating trajectories in nanoseconds while simultaneously slamming guards into the floor, over the railing, or _both_ if he found a particularly weak spot.

Jaune had taken down fourteen when he saw the last one, aiming a rifle directly at him. He didn't even get time to hold up his shield-

**BANG!**

Before another bullet reached them.

Kura walked out behind them, holding Jaune's smoking shotgun. He smirked, "Hell, I'm glad one of the Cerberus freaks is on _our_ side for once." Jaune raised an eyebrow,

"Cerberus freaks?"

Kura nodded, "Yeah, the 'super soldiers' Atlas creates in those weird labs. Figured you were one of them." Jaune slowly nodded… had that been where Callus used to work? A Cerberus scientist turned exile? Would explain why no one else in Vale had tried something like him anyway.

_RAAAAAHH!_

"AAAH!" Jaune and Kura fell to their knees, holding their ears as the armed prisoners around them looked around, wondering what had just happened. Jaune managed to stand, eyes widening as he saw the figure at the end of the hallway.

_TRAITORS!_

Jaune forced himself to stand, Kura flat on the ground as the voice shouting in their heads commanded. He looked up, eyes widening as the prison cells leading to it slowly slammed open, leaving dents in the concrete walls as the figure approached.

_SURRENDER!_

Jaune fought the strange power that demanded he fall to one knee. He stood his ground, holding out his shield. His eyes widened as he saw the same woman from solitary, the one with the gas mask hiding her face. The white lab coat was stained red with blood, her clothes beneath it coated in white dust from the concrete.

She held out both hands, Jaune reacted just fast enough to avoid the cell doors as they all flew from their hinges, slamming toward the middle of the courtyard before crumpling into a metal ball. Other than Kura and Jaune, the woman was the only figure still conscious on the floor. She held out her hand, Jaune watching as the metal ball morphed into a large blade:

_YOU WILL SURRENDER OR YOU-_

_-WILL_

_**-DIE!**_


	8. Act I: Chapter 8

**Act I: The Captain**

Chapter Eight: Matter vs. Mind

"Any more plans, Kura?"

Jaune asked, diving to the floor as the woman's metal blade flew over him. Kura followed suit, diving to the ground as the air became a whirlwind of death. Jaune _might've_ survived it, but Kura? Not a _chance_.

Speaking of, the rebel shook his head, "Not this time, but if she's anything like the warden, she's only strong enough to focus her powers in one or two places at a time." he explained, grabbing a rifle from one of the downed guards, diving beneath a large metal bar.

Jaune nodded, jumping over a piece of metal before diving behind the wall just before the hallway. It wasn't _much_ of a plan, but at the moment it was the best they had. Kura started firing, the bullets predictably hitting against an invisible barrier, completely still by the look of it.

Jaune rushed ahead, throwing his shield behind her before charging from the side. He went to send a punch to her side, only for his back to get _painfully_ well acquainted with the concrete wall behind him. He felt her hands on his collar as she drug from him the wall, his eyes greeted with her mask.

**THUNK!**

Then said masked was greeted by his shield.

"MY MASK!" she let go of him, covering her face with her hands before scrambling around for her mask, giving Jaune enough time to slam his shield on her back… only to get flung back toward Kura, leaving him scrambling to dodge the chunks of concrete flying at him.

Kura chuckled, "Bitch didn't like that! Think you can do it again?" he asked. Jaune peeked around the corner, only to dive back as a piece of metal flew toward him, skidding across the concrete.

Jaune's eyes trailed after it, both widening as it fell over the edge. He stood, leaning against the wall, "Kura! Run to the back wall behind the railing! I'll cover you!" Kura didn't have time to question the order as Jaune stood in the open, jumping a few steps back before holding out his shield, deflecting the pieces of metal he could, dodging those he couldn't.

"_Mommy!_"

Jaune fell to his knee, one hand gripping his head as the other held his shield. The loud, high-pitched voice in his head came with an image. A memory that wasn't his, of a black-haired woman lying in a puddle of blood.

He stood, eyes wide as he saw the woman flying at him. He dove back to the ground, letting her fly over him, right over the center of the courtyard. She screamed again, the sound accompanied by the benches on the ground flying up to her, surrounding her like a makeshift shield.

_DIE!_

Some of the benches flew at Jaune, the rest gathering behind her, giving Kura no clean shot. Jaune dove beneath one, another shattering over him, sending him into the hallway she'd been in a moment ago.

"_Where are you taking me!?_"

Jaune dove into a nearby cell, gripping his forehead again as that voice yelled to him, showing him flashes of a hospital bed, of a little hand, cuffed to it… "They're yours… your memories." Jaune muttered, dashing across to another cell, rolling beneath a nearby bench.

He dashed ahead, shoulder-charging through another bench before his eyes flicked around, trying to figure out a way past her seemingly impervious defense. "Okay, how do I get the insane, murder-happy telekinetic woman to let her guard down?" Jaune muttered, watching as another bench flew past, shattering against the wall.

"Hey! Psycho-Bitch!"

Jaune's eyes widened as he stepped out, seeing Kura waving at her, gun in hand. He started firing at her, the bullets, of course, doing nothing but pissing her off. She started floating towards him, benches still behind her as her focus changed.

"Yeah! You! The bitch that can't hit the broadside of a _barn_ with those powers!"

Kura's eyes met his, and at that moment Jaune understood. He made his way to the railing, slowly moving along the edge as the woman slowly approached, deathly silent as she floated over the courtyard.

"Hey! Here's an idea! Why don't you quit the power-schtick!? Not like they're-"

Kura gripped his throat as the woman's hands clasped together, slowly lifting him with her mind.

_I will show you suffering._

"You… think you know… _suffering_…?" Kura said, fighting his own closing throat.

Jaune acted, jumping off the railing before throwing his shield to the left, watching it ricochet toward her. Predictably, she caught it with her field, as expected. What she probably _didn't_ expect was for him to smash through one of the benches, hand slipping past her powers and grabbing her mask.

"NO! LET GO! GET OFF!" Kura fell, Jaune hanging on for dear life as the benches fell, the woman focusing all her strength on pulling Jaune off her mask. Jaune swung his other arm around her head, both hands on the edges of the mask as he tried to pull it off. He could feel the fear in her voice, in the panicked screams suddenly flying through his mind.

Kura —having finally recovered from the woman choking him— staggered to a stand, eyes wide at the sight before him. He leaned down, barely thinking as he grabbed his rifle, aiming at the two.

He focused for a moment, taking a breath the way he'd always been taught, aiming for her legs. Rather than fire once, Kura emptied the entire mag, hoping at least _one_ bullet would hit their target.

"AAAAAHHH!"

Turns out? Two of them did.

Her grip released in her pain, Jaune flew back into the wall, nearly embedded in the concrete, gas mask in hand. "Ahh… did it work?" he looked up, smiling as he saw Kura giving him a thumbs up, running for the stairs.

Meanwhile, the Arc pushed himself off the wall, landing on the ground caked in mortar and dust.

"Please…"

Jaune looked around for a moment, raising an eyebrow as he saw the woman nearby. The voice was so… weak. So fragile, so delicate. She was crouched on the nearby ground, covering her face with her hands, swinging her head around slightly.

She looked up as she heard Jaune walking toward her, "My mask… please, I need my mask… I'm _begging_ you, _please_!" she tried crawling toward him, only to fall without the use of her hands.

Jaune stopped about 20 feet away, far enough he knew he was out of range of her powers. If she couldn't control those pieces of shrapnel after she threw them at him, her range _couldn't_ have been much more.

Kura made his way down the stairs, reloading his rifle, "How about I just shoot you right now you cold-hearted _bitch_!?" the amount of hate and anger Kura put into that one word made Jaune stop for a moment, questioning just what she'd done to him.

Jaune shook his head, handing Kura the mask.

He threw it to the ground.

"Hear that? That's me _breaking _this damn thing!"

**BANG! BANG!**

"NOOOOO!" the woman fell to the ground, sobs wracked her body as Kura blew her mask to pieces. Jaune frowned… why did he feel guilty? This was a woman that worked for Mistral, that had seemingly _casually_ sentenced prisoners to their deaths _hundreds_ of times… why should he feel sorry for her?

Still, what she'd done didn't stop him from walking up to her, frowning down at her before he took a knee. He reached forward, gently grabbing her hands. "NO! NO! DON'T LOOK AT ME! DON'T…" Jaune pulled her arms back, blue eyes meeting white ones.

"Don't… look at me…" tears ran free down her cheeks, eyes with no iris, no pupil to speak of gazing back at Jaune. A face whose left half was covered in scars, the right with one large burn mark down her face. Jaune frowned, a spark of sympathy for the insane girl forming in his chest.

She closed her eyes, "Just kill me… _please_ just… get it over with…" she sobbed more, flinching away as Jaune's hand fell on her shoulder. Like a frightened animal… or one that had been hit far too many times.

Jaune shook his head, gently cupping her face in his hands, "I'm not going to hurt you… Kura," he turned to the rebel, "Get everyone out of here, meet me back at the village." the man raised an eyebrow, but nodded regardless. He'd seen enough of Jaune to know he could take care of himself.

As soon as Kura left, Jaune turned his eyes back to Kura, whose oddly blank eyes met his again. "Why? Want to… to be _alone_ while you… you…" she whimpered, laying her head to the side, "Just get it over with…"

Jaune shook his head, pulling down his hood and goggles before gently wiping her tears with his thumbs, "I'm not going to hurt you… what's your name?" he asked, giving her the most reassuring smile he could. She turned back to him, eyes… well, he _guessed_ they were confused. It was hard to tell when they were just whites.

"Why… why do you care?"

"Because I want to know what to call you."

She frowned, letting her head fall back, taking a few breaths. "There's no point… I'll be dead soon anyway."

"What do you mean?" Jaune asked, raising an eyebrow. She _looked_ fine to him, and _he_ certainly wasn't going to do anything. She shook her head, taking a few, more labored breaths.

"The mask… it kept me alive. My leash… kept me docile." she trailed off, gently reaching into her coat, pulling out a small filter for a gas mask. Empty, no doubt.

Jaune's eyes widened, "I… I didn't know… how long have you-"

"Don't know… doesn't matter, really."

Jaune let his hands fall back, gently taking one of hers, "I'll stay… until you… you know…" he didn't want to say it. Both knew it, but he still couldn't bring himself to say it.

She looked at him for a moment, "I…" she gave a little smile, "Thank you." she let herself fall back again, her eyes gazing into the blue sky above. Jaune didn't move his hands, still holding her hand as her breaths became more labored, as her eyes glossed over more and more —to the point Jaune could even begin to see it.

The whole time he talked to her, and she talked back… well, sort of. He would ask questions, and she'd give him visions. The last bits of her powers, all used to tell him her story. How she was taken, how her parents died, the way she was —all of it… and in return, he told her his.

She started shaking as he finished his story, her arms reaching for him. Jaune didn't move, gently wrapping his arms around her as she looked up. "I… I don't… want to die…" Jaune had never heard such naked fear from someone. She was so afraid… she knew she was dead, but just couldn't accept it.

Jaune shook his head, "No one does… it's okay… I'm here, friend." Jaune smiled at her as she fell back, her arms going lax as she kept fighting. He could tell she was fighting, struggling to even breathe.

"Maria… Gentry…"

Jaune smiled, "Jaune Arc."

She let out a small chuckle, gasping for breath a few times before she leaned back, her face twisting into a small, peaceful smile. Jaune watched her hand move, the slow motion of a creature taking its last steps. He felt her finger point to his chest, Maria taking one final breath.

"Callus… was… right…"

Jaune didn't leave for a long time, frowning at what he knew was a corpse in his arms. It felt so _wrong_ to him, to leave the sight of a tragedy only one person would ever know. The tragedy of Maria's life, a life that had been taken from her before it could begin, turned into something horrible and twisted.

He mourned her for a long time… someone had to. A single tear fell from his cheek, splashing against her chest. He could've sworn he saw her smile widen a little. At least one person mourned for her… at least one person cared enough to cry.

He stood, not a word leaving his lips as he grabbed his shield, looking back at Maria's body. "No… no, I'm not leaving you here." he slid his shield over his back, hoisting Maria in his arms, not bothering to pull his cap and goggles back on.

He walked out through the prison doors, past the corpses of guards and through the front gate, frowning as he saw the many corpses —prisoner and guard alike— littering the ground. He walked past familiar faces and unfamiliar ones. James, Johnson —so many were dead… but it was clear the prisoners had won today.

He turned for the village, walking in silence, marching up the hill. He walked a good way north, stopping only when he found a tall tree at the edge of the town, draping branches covering the dirt beneath.

Jaune set Maria down, grabbing his shield from his back before using it as a makeshift shovel, digging her grave. When he'd gotten it deep enough, he started looking, smiling as he saw a few flowers nearby. He took six, laying the red tulips down on her chest. "Wish I knew if you liked them… sorry if you don't, Maria." Jaune muttered, smiling at the woman.

A small, black cap lay over them.

Jaune looked up, eyes widening as he saw the warden herself standing there, looking down at Maria. She didn't say a word, planting a kiss on her forehead before looking at him. The two stared each other down, both with expressions more somber than usual. Where there once was cheer there was now sadness. Where once madness, there was grief.

The warden walked around her, gently grabbing her body, eyes asking Jaune a silent question. He answered by leaning down, the two lifting Maria over her grave, gently laying her down. She reached into her coat, producing a small, military-issued shovel.

The two worked together in silence, Jaune with his shield and the warden with her shovel, burying Maria. Neither said a word as the warden walked to the nearby flowers, gathering a few red tulips —root and all— and planting them over her grave.

Silent tears rolled down the Warden's face as she stood straighter, saluting the grave. Jaune did the same, letting his shield fall to the ground. The two stood in silence, the wind rustling the leaves on the tree above them, the sun setting behind as a few leaves fell.

Elizabeth was the first to lower her hand, walking to the tree behind the grave before holding out her hand, words carving themselves into it. Jaune stood by and watched, silent as the woman crafted Maria's grave.

_Maria Gentry: The best sister in the world_

Jaune laid a hand on her shoulder as she stepped back. The shorter woman looked up at him, leaning her head against his stomach. Jaune didn't move, a few tears of his own joining Elizabeth's on the grave.

It was well past sunset when Elizabeth finally broke away. She looked back at him, sending him one last message into his mind, at last walking away into the woods. Jaune watched her walk away, the vivid image of a younger her and Maria sitting together on a swing in his mind as she, at last, walked out of sight.

He turned away, walking back to the village in silence.


	9. Act I: Chapter 9

**Act I: The Captain**

Chapter Nine: Aftermath and Preparations

"_There_ he is!"

Jaune looked up, dragging himself from that cold, dark place in his mind he'd been just a few moments prior. The dirt of Maria's grave was still on his hands, the memory Elizabeth had sent him still fresh in his head. He looked around, seeing throngs of people in prisoner garb, with a few less wearing normal garb for the village.

Kura stood in the center of town, a few boxes beneath him acting as a sort of pedestal. He held out a hand, gesturing for Jaune to join him. Jaune looked to his hand for a few seconds before he shook his head, gesturing to Emilia's house.

"I've got a friend to check up on first," he said. Kura nodded a few times, holding up his (Jaune's (well, actually, technically it's Pvt. Hori's —ah hell he's not here to care, go with Jaune's)) shotgun in the air. Doing so seemed to be a sort of signal, Kura picking up a speech Jaune guessed his arrival interrupted, the village (+prisoners) going wild.

Jaune, meanwhile, walked into Emilia's home, casually making his way to the basement. He'd just jumped down the ladder when he felt the barrel of a gun (pistol, based on the size of the barrel) pressed against his skull.

He turned as soon as the gun moved, two sighs of relief meeting in the air as Jaune and Angela's eyes met. Angela set her gun back at her hip, limping forward slightly before wrapping an arm around his shoulder.

Jaune smiled, face burning a bit, "Miss me that much? I was only gone a few hours," he said. He wrapped his arms back around her anyway, gently patting her back. Good to see she was okay, after all of this.

Angela leaned back, hand on her hip as she gave a little smirk, "Well _sorry_, Captain. Tell you what? Next time some guy goes on a next to impossible, death-defying mission because someone said they'd help him?" she thumped his chest, "I'll be sure to tell him he's an idiot _first_… oh yeah —and you're an idiot, Jaune."

Jaune chuckled, hand rubbing behind his head, "Yeah… the whole 'being sneaky' thing was never really my strong suit…" he trailed off. If he did something, _everyone_ knew it was him. It'd been the case when he was little —why not now?

Angela wrapped an arm around his shoulder, Jaune instinctively wrapping one around her waist and lifting her slightly, taking the pressure off her foot. The two (really one, Angela's good foot just kinda grazed the ground) walked into the basement, the doctor from before just cleaning up his tools.

Jaune walked over to him, "Sir," the man looked up, "I can't thank you enough for this. Saving her, I mean." he lifted Angela slightly, the girl leaving the ground (again) before the palm of her foot grazed against it again.

The man pulled back his surgical mask, brown eyes twinkling from within his tanned face, "You're kidding, right?" he turned to Angela, "He's kidding, isn't he?" it had to be a joke. The man that had just caused a mass outbreak at the prison and weakened Mistral's grip on the region was thanking _him_?

Angela shook her head, "Nope, he means it," she turned to Jaune, "Should've called you Captain Modesty, in hindsight."

Jaune turned away, his face turning red as Angela giggled, rubbing her head against his shoulder… naturally, this only caused the issue of Jaune's blush to get _infinitely_ worse, prompting the doctor to ask if he had a fever.

Jaune sighed, Angela still giggling at his blush as he walked over to the table, shaking the doctor's hand before he left —no doubt joining the villagers in celebration.

Thus the two were alone… and this time _not_ in immediate mortal danger like last time. Jaune took a seat against the back wall, propping Angela up on a nearby table. He looked around for a moment before he coughed, "So, uh… how's your leg doing? Holding up okay?"

Angela looked at him for a second, her face blank. Then, without missing a beat, she casually turned around and backflipped _off_ the table and did a back handspring until she was lying face-up over his lap. She smirked,

"I dunno, what do you think?"

Jaune blinked a few times, "I _think_ someone's parents spent a lot of money on gymnastics classes."

Angela let her head fall back on the ground, her smirk vanishing. Jaune looked down, concern immediately flooding his features, "He-Hey… are you okay? Was it something I said or…" Jaune trailed off, eyes flicking back to her leg.

Angela held her hand in front of his face, pulling his chin back to her head. "No, it's… yeah, _someone's_ parents might have spent a lot of money on gymnastics classes… but definitely not mine." she muttered, turning her head to the side.

Jaune leaned forward, gently lifting her legs so he could lay next to her. His eyes flicked over her face, seeing the somewhat saddened expression before she turned away, curling in slightly, tail drooping around her waist.

Jaune let his hand rest on her shoulder, "Sorry… I didn't mean to-"

"It's fine, Jaune… you couldn't mean to say something like that if you _tried_."

Jaune couldn't see her smile, only hear the saddened voice. For just a second, Jaune forgot who she was. He forgot that he was dealing with an agent of the VIA, and for just a moment he even forgot her name.

He leaned forward, wrapping his arms around her in a reverse hug, "I know it isn't fine… look me in the eye and tell me you're okay…" he waited, leaning back slightly and watching her shoulders move slightly, her head still facing away from him.

"I'm okay."

"I said look me in the eye, Angela."

"I'm _okay_, Jaune."

"I said-"

"IF YOU WANT ME TO LOOK YOU IN THE EYE YOU HAVE TO _LET GO OF ME_!"

Jaune blinked a few times, unwrapping his arms from around her, letting her turn around. She puffed out her cheeks a bit, her face red as she glared at him. Jaune —for rather different reasons than last time, wrapped his arms around her again, pulling her flush against him.

Her face went red again as she leaned against his shoulder, tail brushing against his waist. "Look… so my parents weren't rich —so they were filthy bastards that spent every bit of money they earned drinking or gambling —so what? So what if I learned how to do that by running… from the… okay, saying it out loud I _kind of_ understand the concern."

Jaune chuckled, hand unconsciously running down her hair, "Hey, as long as I didn't make you mad, I'm fine with it…" He trailed off, running one hand through her hair, the other pressing her gently to his waist. Her tail rubbed up and down his side, Angela feeling two conflicting emotions:

Loving the affection.

And hating that she loved the affection.

She looked up after a minute, managing to catch the Arc's eye. Her face took on a more quizzical look, "Why did you hug me the second time, anyway? I get the first, but why the second? Trying to calm me down or something?" she asked.

Jaune shook his head, doing the one thing that _usually_ didn't end well for him: Talking before he thought. "Not really. I just thought you looked cute all pouty and mad." He said it with a straight face, a smile —never _once_ considering the implications it would have on who he was saying it to.

Angela, on the other hand, understood _perfectly_ the implications. Which explained why her face looked like it was a nuclear reactor going through a meltdown. She turned her eyes to the smiling Arc's face, "Did… did all that new muscle go to your _head_?" she asked, face cast in a mold of disbelieve.

Jaune's face settled into something more confused, "Umm… sorry, I uh… I don't really understand what you're asking."

Honestly? That's about the response Angela expected out of him.

She sighed, laying her chin on his chest so she could look up at him, "I'm _asking_ why you blush at just being _close_ to me most of the time, yet for some reason, you're hugging me and calling me cute and _nothing_. Nothing! Just that cute little smile and…"

Even Jaune wasn't dense enough to miss _that_ one.

His face instantly turned _bright_ red, "Wait you… you —you think my… my smile's… cute?" he whispered the last bit, mind working on overdrive to process it. A girl —a rather attractive one at that— calling _him_ cute? He figured he'd sooner see a giant wave of light wipe out all of Remnant —or see a giant, flying woman with _lightning_ firing from her hands than be called cute by her!

Angela pouted again, pulling back and lightly pounding her fists against his chest (it was… well, about like getting hit by wads of paper to Jaune). "You called _me_ cute just a few seconds ago! Why are you _suddenly_ embarrassed!? Why do you _do_ that!?" she asked, face turning red from both embarrassment and frustration.

Even with the serum, it still took Jaune's brain a few seconds to process what he'd heard, "What? I meant you were… you know. Cute like a…" he trailed off, trying to think of cute things… well, cute things that made _sense_ in this situation.

"Like a little cat riding on a dog's back —like in that old cartoon! Or uh… or like my little sister! She gets all pouty, frustrated, lets out these little huffing noises when you get too close to her before she jumps into the nearest thing —funny story we actually have a box just for that-"

"Stop changing the subject!" Angela interrupted.

"I'm not! I'm just explaining-"

**CRUNCH!**

The two froze, both expressions quizzical as they —in near-perfect unison— looked behind them. Just a few feet away there was Kura, eating a small bag of nuts, his gun (blah blah Jaune and Hori blah blah —it's basically his now) laid off to the side.

Jaune broke from the stupor first, "How… Kura how long have you been sitting there?" he asked.

Kura ate another nut before he answered, "Not long enough to know how and why you got to the point of debating what type of cute you each are." he held the bag of nuts to his left as he shrugged, "Either way, I came to fill you in on the next stage of the plan."

Jaune slowly stood as Angela _scrambled_ to get off of him, her face burning at being seen the way they were. Jaune, on the other hand, was more focused on Kura's words: "What do you mean by the next stage of the plan, exactly?" he asked.

Kura chuckled, "You didn't honestly think Mistral would leave us alone after we took down one of their prisons, did you?" he gestured to where Jaune guessed was the north, "There's a military base a few clicks north of here —it's where the MP's, soldiers, and the coast guard in this region get their orders… see what I'm going for here?"

Angela glared at him, "You expect a small, ragtag rebellion that's only armed with guns it stole from a nearby prison to take on a fully operational military base and _win_?" she'd heard some pretty absurd things, but even _with_ Jaune on their side they couldn't take a base like that.

Kura shook his head, "No. We've got the men to do that, but like you said, we _don't_ have the equipment… walk with me." he turned, walking toward the exit onto the hillside.

Jaune and Angela followed, the three walking up the hillside and toward the sight of Jaune and Angela's plane crash. On the road leading to it, there were men clad in Mistralean military fatigues, all with their hands behind their backs, guards in a strange mix of prisoner-guard attire and normal soldier gear guarding them.

Kura gestured to them, "Guards and soldiers that surrendered during the breakout. One of them," the soldiers all looked to the guy closest to Kura, "explained that there's a supply shipment on the way from the capital, heading _right_ for the prison. The problem is that if they get the word out that the prison's destroyed? Those supplies are heading _right_ into the base."

Jaune looked around for a moment, "What makes you think they didn't get the word out already?" Mistral was nothing if not paranoid. If anyone had managed to get the word to them (most likely Elizabeth based on the direction she was going), they'd already have the supplies being rerouted and the base on lockdown.

Kura smirked, "Since —according to what I heard during my time in prison— they've been having problems with the radio for a few months now. According to Jack over here-" he gestured to the same soldier all the others had looked at, "-they're still working to fix it."

Jaune slowly nodded, "So… what _exactly_ are you proposing here? I sneak in and shut down the radio tower?" he asked. Kura shook his head,

"No… I'm suggesting we make sure it _stays_ broken."

…

"You know you're an idiot, right?"

Jaune sighed, nodding a few times before looking down at Angela. He probably should've seen that coming after her speech earlier. He only had a few hours before he needed to head out, act like part of a convoy coming back from the prison.

Angela walked to him, eyes gazing at the room where Jaune had taken up residence. The barren walls, lack of windows, and a small mattress on the ground served as reminders of exactly where they were. And for Jaune, they were a reminder of _why_ he was fighting.

Jaune sat on said mattress, giving Angela his normal smile, "I might be an idiot, but I'm not stupid. This is going to work, don't worry. They won't expect a whole _convoy_ of us all in disguise. We've all got the tags we need, paperwork —Kura's arranged _everything_." if he was honest, he had more faith in Kura than himself right now.

Angela took a seat beside him, "I know but…" she sighed, letting her eyes fall to her feet, "why do you think you have to do this, anyway? Is this some kind of Mistralean thing? Cause I don't get it."

Jaune shook his head, "No… more of a 'me' thing, really." He frowned, "But… honestly? I don't know. Maybe it _is_ a Mistralean thing —wanting to fight for your home, anyway."

Angela smiled, nodding a few times, "Yeah… people in Vacuo aren't like that. Guess it's hard to feel attached to your home when it can get blown away by a strong gust of wind."

The two shared a laugh at that one, both lapsing into a comfortable silence as Jaune stood, changing into his new soldier's outfit. He was apparently 'Drago Sustrai' now, based on the uniform and dog tags. One of the soldiers at the prison Kura had captured. The only one that looked enough like him to be passable.

Jaune was about to walk out when he felt two arms snake around his waist, a familiar tail brushing against his torso. He didn't hesitate to turn, embracing the shorter girl. "Hey, everything's going to be fine. I mean, I survived a plane crash _and_ broke almost everyone out of a prison… what's a military base compared to that?"

Angela leaned back, giving him a brighter smile that Jaune could've never pictured on her face just a few days ago, "Yeah… do me a favor, okay?" Jaune, naturally, nodded, raising an eyebrow when she started rubbing against him. He was confused as to why…

Well, until he heard the purring anyway.

"You can do that?" Jaune asked, raising an eyebrow at her. Angela looked up, holding a finger up to her lips, shushing him. Jaune —for once —actually understood the gesture, repeating it to show he understood. Their secret, then.

Angela leaned back, "Come back alive, I'll show you what else I can do." she winked, crossing her arms as Jaune just stood there, a confused look on his face.

"Okay… uhh, why did you just wink at me?"

For the first time since he'd met her, Angela burst out laughing, holding her stomach as her face went bright red. The fact that the obvious tease had gone _that_ far over his head was hilarious to her. Jaune, meanwhile, was just left scratching his head.

When Angela finally recovered, she simply smirked, "I swear your brain must be made of _lead_… let's see just how _much_ of it is." she casually walked forward, Jaune about to ask what she was doing.

She kissed him on the cheek.

"Understand _that_ one?"

Someone should've yelled 'fire in the hole!', given the grenade of blush that just went off on Jaune's face. That only got Angela to laugh harder, an arm on Jaune's shoulder to try and steady herself.

Unfortunately, Jaune wasn't really that stable himself.

Angela was still laughing when both fell back on the bed, Jaune starting to laugh with her. A few seconds later, Jaune was just laying there, still staring at the laughing Angela. Another few seconds and she'd stopped, staring right back.

Angela leaned against him, "Well _this_ feels familiar, doesn't it?" she asked. Jaune nodded, of course —it hadn't been _that_ long ago since they'd been in this same position in the basement.

"Hey! Lovebirds!"

Jaune turned, raising an eyebrow at Kura. He was now clad in military garb —the commander of the unit they were pretending to be. He jerked a thumb over his shoulder,

"Showtime."


	10. Act I: Chapter 10

**Act I: The Captain**

Chapter Ten: Cerberus rising

The sun was setting as the rebels approached the base.

The base itself was almost the size of the prison —concrete walls topped with barbed wire included. Guard towers were stationed at each corner, snipers gazing through binoculars across the horizon.

Jaune nearly cringed as he shifted his arm, hearing the rifle on his shoulder knock against his shield. It was a faint sound —and he was probably the only one that could hear it —but that didn't change the fact it was _there_. Unfortunately, when soldiers came to the base, they _usually_ left the riot gear back in the prison.

The jeep came to a stop at the checkpoint, one of the soldiers walking up to each of them. Each of them showed him a small ID card —customary to carry at the prison. Jaune showed his before the man nodded, walking back and getting the bar up.

They came to a halt next to a few other jeeps, a few soldiers smoking nearby waving at them. Jaune was the one that waved back, a few of the rebels giving a half-wave.

The driver walked back to him, leaning over and whispering. "You remember the plan, right?"

Jaune nodded, "I get to the radio control room and take the radio offline. We get out of the base our own way, then meet back at the village, right?" Kura had been _very_ clear in their briefing… though, he hadn't specified what everyone _else's_ role was to him.

The driver nodded, turning back to the main group as they made their way toward the base itself. Jaune's eyes trailed up, narrowing slightly on the large tower looming over the base. He guessed if worse came to worse, he could always target the tower's frame and just knock it down.

The six walked in, the front rebels playing up the 'friendly soldiers' act rather well as they started walking down the hall. Jaune, meanwhile, kept a small smile on his face, giving a slight nod to every soldier he saw while subtly watching them for signs of aggression.

Though, it seemed like the soldiers were buying their disguises. Everyone he gave a nod to usually nodded back, a faint smile on their face. He guessed each one thought he was saying something along the lines of 'Better here than the front, right?'. At least, that's the vibe he got from most of them.

At least, except _one_.

This one looked to be a bit older than him —maybe twenty at most. His eyes held a sort of mistrust —though from what Jaune could tell he believed the disguise. Maybe the man had read his uniform and thought he was Sgt. Sustrai? Did he unknowingly get involved in some sort of feud?

He watched the man turn away, quickly walking toward a room at the end of the hallway… and of course, it was the _one_ room Jaune had to go to. He sighed, "He would be going to the radio operators room, wouldn't he?" he muttered, making his way there.

He made his way across the hall, pushing open the door. Inside he saw a rather small room with radio equipment seemingly strewn about everywhere —most of it not in working order. At the far wall was the soldier from before, messing with a large console Jaune _guessed_ was attached to the large radio antennae.

He took two steps towards him before the man froze, calmly turning to face him. The older gentleman coughed, "Sgt. Sustrai. What are you doing here?"

Jaune calmly walked to the table, the man blocking his view of the radio the whole time. "I was ordered to try and get the radio up and running again… let me guess, they told you to do the same thing?"

The man nodded. Jaune sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose as he tried to play up the 'so done with this' vibe he was going for, "I hate it when this happens. Well, guess we better get to work."

Internally, Jaune was panicking. How was he supposed to disable the radio with this guy who was ordered to make sure it _worked_? Ways to knock the man out ran through his mind as he approached, only for the man to lay a hand on his shoulder, "That won't be necessary. I'm more than capable of performing the repairs myself."

Jaune brushed his hand off, "So am I, but we've got orders. Now let me see it."

The man kept blocking him, even as Jaune tried to muscle past. Eventually, he just shoved him aside, glaring at the soldier while trying to stay in cover. He turned to look at the radio, raising an eyebrow when he noticed the small chip hidden in the crack. Pulling it out revealed…

"You were trying to-"

**PING!**

"GAH!" Jaune gripped his shoulder as he felt the bullet slam into it, knocking him back. He dove to the ground before the man could get off another shot, leg hooking on a table leg and flinging it toward him.

The man ducked beneath it, scrambling to get away from the now destroyed (and on fire) radio equipment as Jaune shot to his feet. He dashed forward, forcing the man's pistol to aim at the ceiling as he fired again. The man's eyes were wild as he opened his mouth, slamming his teeth together.

Jaune tossed him against the wall, kicking his pistol away before grabbing the man by the collar, pulling him to him, "Listen to me! We're not…"

Jaune trailed off, eyes widening as he saw the foam start spewing from the man's mouth, a few shards of glass following. His eyes focused on Jaune's, "Free… Haven…"

He went limp, dying in Jaune's grasp.

He let the corpse fall, water dowsing him as the fire finally set off the sprinklers. He heard the pounding on the door as he sunk to the ground, gripping his bleeding shoulder. When the door slammed open, he saw a soldier rush in, his eyes wide at the scene. He looked out the door, "MEDIC! WE NEED A MEDIC IN HERE!"

Jaune stood, still gripping his shoulder as the soldier walked back in. He stumbled slightly, playing up the injured role as the man rushed to his side, trying to support his weight, "Hold steady Sergeant! Let's get you to the infirmary."

The two made their way out as soldiers rushed past, a medic dashing toward Jaune before having the other soldier move him to the ground.

As the medic used his scalpel to slice through the bloody layer of the soldier's garb, he was suddenly glad he hadn't worn his uniform beneath it. Sure, he'd taken a bullet for it, but better one than one _hundred_ if they figured out who he was.

He winced as he felt the medic probing his arm, extracting the bullet before rubbing alcohol over the wound, taping some gauze over it, "Minimal penetration and no broken bones. You got lucky, Sarg."

Jaune gave a faint smile at the darker-skinned medic, "If getting shot at by a spy's _lucky_, I better go break a few mirrors."

The three shared a laugh at that, both helping Jaune up as the two looked back to the radio room. The first soldier frowned, "What the hell _happened_ in there? I heard the fighting from down the hall."

Jaune shrugged, wincing as he got a _painful_ reminder of where his injury was. Callus's serum might've made him stronger, but it wasn't exactly helpful when dealing with _pain_. He took a breath, "I went in to try and get the radio fixed, then I see this spy putting something inside it. I tried to look and he shot me, then bit down on a glass tooth or something to kill himself."

The other soldier glared back at the room, "Fitting. Damn spies die like the cowards they are."

The medic gave him a faint glare before turning back to Jaune, "How-"

**BOOM!**

The building shook as a wall near the end of the hallway exploded, sending debris and body parts flying everywhere. The soldier's eyes widened, "There's more than-"

A bullet silenced him, an unseen assailant from somewhere in the smoke. Jaune pulled the medic down, dragging the two of them around the corner. He looked up, "What the hell's going on!?"

Jaune grit his teeth, gripping his shoulder, "We're under attack! Go deal with the wounded, I'll be fine! Go!"

The medic hesitated, looking between Jaune and the last explosion sight. It took another explosion —one that sounded even closer —before, at last, dashing off toward the wounded. Jaune, meanwhile, decided now would be a _great_ time to make his getaway.

He dashed through the hallway, holding his shoulder the entire time as soldiers dashed past him. Gunfire sounded from outside, along with more explosions. Jaune wasn't sure _what_ was going on, but he knew _something_ had to have gone seriously wrong. Had Kura ordered them to destroy the base? Had his men planted bombs?

Jaune turned the corner, only to freeze. It wasn't by his own free will, but rather by a sudden, inescapable pressure on his body. His mind ground to a halt as he looked up, watching the familiar woman walk toward him.

She was keeping a tighter grip on him this time, not allowing him to move even an _inch_. She'd learned… she recognized him. The warden frowned, "For Maria, you won't die… but I can't let you leave, either."

Jaune fought through it for a moment, reaching a hand toward her until the woman flicked her hand to the right, slamming him against the wall. He took a shaky breath, "Why… are you… doing this?" Jaune could barely breathe.

Elizabeth smiled, "Company, of course."

With the snap of her fingers, Jaune was unconscious.

…

"Wake up."

Jaune slowly opened his eyes, sucking air through his teeth. He hurt all over, his muscles aching as he tried to stand. He was laying over… concrete? The cold beneath his hands _felt_ like concrete anyway.

Everything was dark, but he could still feel… well, nothing but the air and floor. The only exception was a faint weight around his neck —something he felt jabbing into his flesh each time he'd turn. He'd just started to get his bearings when the voice spoke again.

"Subject C-17 is awake. Begin testing procedure."

The voice seemed to come from both everywhere and nowhere —likely an intercom. As if its words were a switch, every light in the room suddenly came on, blinding Jaune. When his eyes at last adjusted, he saw the room had a large mirror on one side, concrete on the other. At either end were metal gates —one of which he was in front of.

At the other? Something he _really_ didn't want to see.

The beast slowly walking out of the other side was something Jaune had only seen in the realm of fairy tales and horror movies. The large, black figure walked on all fours, bones covering most of its face. Burning red eyes gazed at him as a faded gray tongue licked its black lips.

It stood on its hind legs, seemingly almost a foot taller than Jaune. When it howled at the ceiling, Jaune felt it shake him to his very core. The beast slammed its claws on the ground, growling as it prowled towards him.

"Sure, _now_ they wake it up."

Jaune turned, eyes widening as he saw none other than the warden behind him. Though… that wasn't really what got his attention. What caught _his_ eye was the fact that she was wearing about as much as him.

While his face burned bright red, hers showed no reaction, casually walking forward and holding a hand toward the creature. She looked up at him, "You can stare at me later, right now we have to kill this thing."

The creature didn't seem to like her tone, growling as it charged toward them. The warden, on the other hand, didn't seem phased. She just flexed her hand up, concrete breaking off from the ground and flying at the creature.

It broke off its skin, the beast shaking it off before charging again. Jaune gulped, a thousand thoughts running through his head as he got into a combat stance. His mind worked overtime, calculating distances and strengths, weaknesses of the creature.

He had four seconds before the beast neared them, the warden sending a pillar of concrete toward it —only for the beast to dodge. Jaune dashed in front of her, grabbing the beast's upper arm and using its momentum to throw it toward the cage.

It clanged against it, standing up and shaking itself off. The warden smiled, "Not bad for a new blood. Think you can kill it?"

Jaune nodded, wondering how she was so seemingly calm about this presumably life-or-death fight. Though, he didn't get much time to think about it. The beowolf was up and charging in seconds, fangs glistening with its saliva as Jaune stood ready.

The second it got within range, he aimed for its throat. A punch to it stunned it while he grabbed its arm, using his leg to slam the beast into the ground. His heart raced as he gripped it by the shoulder, yanking back on the arm with all his strength.

The beast howled in agony as Jaune fell back, beowolf arm in hand. Its other arm flailed around, scratching into the walls and gate —nearly hitting the warden if she hadn't jumped back in time.

Jaune jumped to his feet, wielding the arm like a spear as he charged, slamming its claws into its chest. He didn't stop, slamming them down over and over again, not stopping until the beast stopped moving.

For good measure, he slammed the claws through its throat as well —_just_ in case. He looked around for a moment, finally able to breathe. Then he looked back to his naked companion/possible enemy, "Why am I here? Where is _here_ anyway?"

He saw the gate opening, a green light shining above the entrance. The warden walked in without hesitation, motioning Jaune to follow. The man did so reluctantly, eyes never stopping on the warden as they trailed along the…Jaune _guessed_ it was an elevator.

He felt a hand on his arm, and turned to see the warden gripping his wrist, "If you want to know, look at my collar." She turned around, holding her hair up so Jaune could see.

The thin strip of metal around the woman's neck looked to have some kind of latch on the back, nearly completely smooth. Walking in front of her revealed a bright red light that suddenly started glowing as they reached the bottom.

Her eyes met his, "Compliance collars. To ensure no experiment goes rogue. Considering Callus made you, they consider you one of us now. As for your second question," the elevator stopped, opening to reveal a group of armed guards.

"Welcome to Cerberus."


End file.
